Guard killed in QC bank heist

Police are hunting six unidentified armed men who shot dead a 35-year-old security guard during a bank heist yesterday morning in Quezon City.

Victim Herman Roquero, a security guard assigned at the Equitable-PCIBank branch on Congressional and Mindanao Avenues in Quezon City and a resident of Sitio Militar, Quezon City, sustained bullet wounds in the chest and expired while receiving medical treatment at the hospital.

The robbers fled the scene on board two vehicles, a Toyota Revo (WBF-835) and an owner-type jeep, carting away over P500,000 in cash. The Revo was later recovered by police abandoned a short distance from the bank.

Initial investigation disclosed that the incident occurred at about 10:30 a.m. at the said Equitable-PCIBank branch.

Five of the suspects reportedly entered the bank and posed as clients, while another stayed outside as a look-out. Without warning, the five pulled out their firearms and announced the robbery.

The robbers then proceeded to fill their bags with cash from the bank’s tellers before trying in vain to open the vault – which was fortunately secured with a time-delay lock.

Operatives of the Central Police District said the actual robbery took only about three to five minutes. On their way out, Roquero tried to put up a fight and pulled out his .38 caliber revolver, but was shot in the left side of the chest by one of the armed men.

According to PO3 Ferdinand Paredes, officer-on-case, the culprits immediately boarded their two vehicles outside the bank. Responding policemen later recovered the Toyota Revo, which was left by the suspects along Asyer street in Congressional Village, Project 8.

Police are conducting follow-up operations to immediately identify the suspects and locate their whereabouts.

Meanwhile, a four-year-old boy died when he accidentally fell from a shopping mall’s escalator in Las Pinas City Thursday night.

Senior Police Officer 3 Willy Dalawangbayan, case investigator, identified the victim as Jerome Velasco, of Block 22, Lot 22, GSIS Townhomes, Molino, Bacoor, Cavite.

Jerome was with his 70-year-old grandmother Josefina Velasco in SM South Mall when the accident took place at around 6 p.m.

It was learned that grandmother and grandson were both on the escalator coming down from the second floor to the ground floor when Jerome shook free of Josefina’s hold to stand by himself and suddenly lost his balance and fell.

Jerome sustained a broken neck and contusions on his head. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the Perpetual Help Medical Center. — Rainier Allan Ronda