Photog's house yields firearms

Police confiscated a cache of firearms and ammunition during a raid Friday night at the house of Philippine Daily Inquirer photographer Joseph Bernabe in Las Piñas City.

Metro Mania police director Chief Superintendent Edgar Aglipay ordered the raid on Bernabe's house following reports that he has in his custody a number of tampered and unlicensed firearms.

Under the policy of Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Director General Panfilo Lacson, gunholders may posses a long and a short firearm, provided both are licensed.

Bernabe, who is also in real estate and used cars buy-and-sell businesses, was not around when men of Senior Superintendent Manuel Cabigon, Southern Police District (SPD) director, swooped down on his house at L-31, B23, Abel Nosce st., BF Resort Village at around 9:30 p.m. Friday.

Cabigon presented to Aglipay yesterday seven high-powered long firearms and 11 assorted handguns and boxes of ammunition seized from the house, during a press briefing at the SPD headquarters in Fort Bonifacio.

"This goes to show that while we are busy with our police visibility campaign, we are also relentlessly pursuing our campaign against lawless elements and loose firearms," said Aglipay. "As of now we surmise that he (Bernabe) is in gunrunning. But on his other activities, we are investigating."

Bernabe failed to report yesterday to the Inquirer office. A woman who answered the phone said it was his day-off. He, too, failed to return the call of The STAR.

Bernabe's son, Joseph Jr., a police reporter of The Philippine Post welcomed the SPD raiders led by intelligence chief Superintendent Federico Laciste Jr., and Superintendent Paul Tucay of the District Police Intelligence Unit (DPIU).

Laciste and Tucay were armed with three search warrants issued by Judge Bonifacio Sanz Maceda, of the Las Piñas City Regional Trial Court Branch 275.

The raid was witnessed by barangay tanods Jaime Dewrino and Cerilo Dejon and the photographer's lawyer Rebecca Manuel.

Cabigon said Bernabe Jr. cooperated fully with the raiders by opening the locked doors of the rooms of the two-story bungalow.

Confiscated were an M14 assault rifle, an M16 Armalite rifle, a baby Armalite, a 9mm mini-UZI, a 12-gauge shotgun, a caliber .22 rifle with telescopic sight, a caliber .45 automatic pistol, a caliber .40 STI, two Walther PPK 9mm pistols, four caliber .38 revolvers and assorted magazines and ammunition.

According to Cabigon, a number of the seized firearms bore tampered serial numbers.

Others were unlicensed. But Bernabe Jr. argued that the seized firearms were covered by pertinent papers.

Aglipay called on Bernabe to surrender and face the charges against him. "It is better for him to show up or surrender or else I will order a manhunt for him," he warned.