Cebu City is now marketplace of stolen cars from Mindanao

Cebu City has become the marketplace for stolen vehicles from Mindanao, according to a top official of the Commission on Human Rights yesterday when he recovered his wife's car from authorities in Cebu.

Commissioner Dominador Calamba relayed this information to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-Region 7 about a carnapping syndicate in Mindanao that transport stolen cars to Cebu to be sold to unwitting buyers.

Calamba disclosed that a car display center in Lapu-Lapu City has been selling these stolen vehicles since but he refused to give the media the details about the matter.

Calamba gave the CIDG-7 a copy of an arrest warrant, issued by Judge Marie Ellengrid Baliguat of General Santos City, against a certain "Monching" who has been allegedly running the display center.

Monching's name reportedly surfaced after a suspected car theft, identified as Alimbusar Ali, was arrested a few months ago in General Santos City for stealing a car of a military officer there.

Ali reportedly told the police about Monching's involvement in carnapping operations, being the buyer of stolen vehicles for shipment to Cebu and put these for sale in his display center.

Calamba suspected that some policemen in Mindanao might have something to do also with the tampering of serial numbers of the engines and chassis of these stolen cars.

In the case of the car of his wife, Calamba said it was stolen from the parking lot of a hospital in Davao City on January 2004 when he was confined for a mild stroke.

This car was spotted months ago this year in Malabang, Lanao del Sur but the police there did not know that it was a carnapped vehicle.

On the night of August 7, CIDG-7 members saw and intercepted the car, which a Japanese businessman was driving along Gorordo Avenue.

The Japanese showed the police the documents disclosing that he got it from a certain Reynold dela Torre, who was later traced to have acquired the car from a man named Marcelo Cabahug.

CIDG-7's SPO2 Noel Seno told The FREEMAN that aside from Calamba's car, two other cars have been traced to come from Cabahug. As such, authorities are now preparing for the indictment of Cabahug.

Seno bared that Cebu, Iloilo and Dumaguete cities have now become the dumping ground for stolen vehicles not only from Mindanao but also from Manila. He said further that an organized crime group with "contacts" in government agencies might be behind these illegal operations in the region.

The process of shipping cars from one point to another destination has been easier now than in the past because cars could now be transported through port to port without scrutinizing the documents.

"Hindi na nga hinahanapan ng official receipts or Certificate of Registration, basta makabayad ka lang ng bill of lading sa Philippine Ports Authority, tsaka sa arrastre," Seno said.

Meanwhile, the CIDG-7 and the Regional Traffic Management Group-7 reported that, for May this year alone, they recovered in Cebu at least 15 vehicles stolen from other places.

Based on this accomplishment, the CHR commissioner conferred commendations to CIDG-7's Sr/Supt. Jorge Corpuz and Seno, the entire CIDG-7 force, and Supt. Abdalun Awilun and his men of the RTMG-7. - Edwin Ian Melecio/RAE