Police on red alert for robbery group from Mindanao

CEBU, Philippines – The Cebu City Police Office was in red alert status since yesterday after receiving intelligence reports that a big-time robbery group from Mindanao is planning to pull a heist here.

The group, CCPO Director Melvin Ramon Buenafe said, could already be here in the city and will target big establishments, banks and armored vehicles.

"The report is that they are going to operate. It could be na dia na sila diri or are still coming," Buenafe said.

With the raised status, the CCPO will intensify its intelligence-gathering against criminals, as well as policemen visibility in the streets. They have also asked augmentation from the Regional Public Safety Battalion.

Just this week, the CCPO swooped down on three alleged members of a big-time robbery group from Bohol who failed to flee after robbing a lending firm with over P100,000 cash and belongings in Barangay Sambag 1.

Meanwhile, in the southern town of Carcar, P200,000 worth of cash was stolen from the vault of a feeds store at the public market in Barangay Poblacion II, dawn yesterday.

The store's owner, May Go, 50, sought police assistance after one of her workers, Marjun Catanaman, discovered around 7am that the vault at the store was already destroyed and empty.

Catanaman is the one holding the keys to the store and the one in charge of opening the store in the morning.

PO1 Gilmer Noval, duty desk officer of the Carcar police, said the suspect gained entry through the ceiling, which is made of plywood.

They also discovered a ladder and an iron rod at the back of store, which the suspect might have used. No other things were taken from store.

Police are not discounting the possibility that the robbery was an inside job. - Mellanie C. Rosales and Niña G. Sumacot/JMO (FREEMAN)