LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Four carnappers were successively arrested by alert police operatives after having caught red-handed in possession of alleged carnapped motorcycles in this capital town Saturday.
Senior Superintendent David Q. Lacdan, officer-in-charge of the Benguet Provincial Police Office, said intelligence operatives of the La Trinidad municipal police station were able to arrest three suspected carnappers who were believed to have carted away a motorcycle owned by a lending collector along Naguilian Road, Baguio City Saturday dawn.
Lacdan identified the suspected carnappers as Monico Enomneng Hernandez, 28, single, miner; Ariel Say-ao Moquil, 27, single; and Nickson Babawen Binaliw, 28, single, also a miner and all natives of Tadian, Mountain Province and residents of Buhaw, Puguis, La Trinidad, Benguet.
Initial police investigation showed while the intelligence operatives were conducting covert mobile patrol along the stretch of the Halsema highway in Tomay, they chanced upon two of the suspects pushing a motorcycle while another was holding its handle bar and directing it towards Poblacion.
When the operatives politely asked the suspects to present the pertinent documents of the motorcycle, the three individuals failed to show any of the demanded documents,
Further, the operatives found out that the ignition wire connecting the switch was newly cut.
When further inspections were done on the suspects, the police personnel were able to recover from them one kitchen knife, one screw driver and piece 15-inch adjustable wrench as well as fuses.
Upon proper coordination with the personnel of Station No. 1 of the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO), the La Trinidad police was able to uncover that the recovered motorcycle from the suspects was stolen along Naguilian road, Baguio City and was said to be owned by Jayson Vinas Quezada, 28, single, lending collector and a resident of Victoria Village, Quezon Hill, Baguio City.
The arrested suspects and the seized items were all turned over to BCPO Station 1 personnel for proper disposition.
In a followup operation on the earlier reported missing motorcycle in Shilan, Chief Inspector Radino Belly, chief of the La Trinidad municipal police station, claimed their operation was successful following the interception of the suspect through a checkpoint in Tili, Shilan.
He identified the suspect as Rizaldy Martinez Gamong-e, 25, married, farmer, native of Mabalite, Tadian, Mountain Province and resident of Middle Quirino Hill, Baguio City.
Belly said the suspect was arrested while driving a reported missing motorcycle at the police checkpoint. The suspect and the recovered motorcycle were immediately brought to the La Trinidad police headquarters.
A certain Mr. Masion, the supposed owner of the carnapped motorcycle, positively identified the recovered motorcycle from the possession of the suspect as the one that he owns.
A case of carnapping is being prepared for filing against the suspect who is now temporarily detained at the La Trinidad municipal jail awaiting the decision of the provincial prosecutor’s office on the case to be filed against him.
Belly called on victims of carnapping incidents to visit the BCPO Station No. 1 and the La Trinidad municipal police station to identify whether or not the arrested suspects were the ones who carted away their vehicles so that more charges will be filed against them.
By Dexter A. See
