‘Hot on their trail’

Police are now hunting down three members of the Kuratong Baleleng Gang who were part of the 30-man group that stormed the Equitable-PCIBank branch in Makati City and took off with some P1.5 million last April 5.

Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco said they identified the three suspects in the video footage captured by the bank’s security camera.

"We identified three of the suspects and my men are already hot on their trail," Velasco told The Star, noting they now have in their possession solid evidence against the suspects.

However, Velasco refused to identify the three suspects pending coordination with the office of Chief Superintendent Robert Delfin, director for intelligence of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The Star learned that Delfin is currently collating evidence that would pave the way for the filing of robbery-in-band charges against the suspects before the Makati City prosecutor’s office on Monday.

Velasco is hoping that the identification of the three suspects would hasten their arrest.

Earlier, a Star source said a number of safehouses used by remnants of the Kuratong Baleleng Gang are being monitored by combined elements of the intelligence unit and the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO).

Superintendent Miguel Laurel, officer-in-charge of the intelligence division of the NCRPO, claimed his men raided two suspected safehouses of the gang in Metro Manila last week. No suspects were caught.

Fifteen of the robbers entered the Equitable-PCIBank using the back entrance while the others stayed outside on board several vans. All of them were heavily-armed.

Police are still baffled why the robbers risked pulling off a daring robbery when the loot on hand meant only meager shares among them.

"It was quite strange that they would pull it off for just P1.5 million, considering one of the vehicles they had was worth more than that," a Star source said.

The robbers arrived at the bank located at the corner of Gil Puyat Avenue and Paseo de Roxas on board a gray Ford Expedition, a dark-colored Toyota Revo, a Hyundai Starex van, a Toyota sedan and two motorcycles. The vehicles were believed to be stolen.

Before escaping, the robbers grabbed the video tapes from several security cameras inside the bank. But they seemed unaware of the presence of another one located above the back door of the building, which the gang used as entry and exit point, police said.

After viewing the video footage, three suspects were identified through the rogue gallery kept by the Parañaque City police. The three suspects were also part of the group that robbed two banks in Parañaque early this year, police said.