Checkpoint shootout

One of four suspected car jackers, disguised as "Bantay Bayan" operatives, was killed in a hail of bullets while three policemen were injured, one of them critically, in a shootout at a routine checkpoint Thursday night in Malabon.

Another suspect was later collared in Makati City while two remaining cohorts are being tracked down by a joint police team.

Superintendent Pedro Ramos, Malabon police chief, identified the wounded policemen as SPO4 Rey Napa, SPO1 Lynbel Casungcad and a certain "PO1 Alvarez," all detailed at the Malabon police Precinct 3 on Hito street, Kaunlaran Village in Barangay Longos, Malabon City. PO2 Joel Ortega, the fourth cop manning the checkpoint, was unhurt.

The wounded officers were initially taken to the Pagamutang Bayan ng Malabon (PBM) and later brought to the Chinese General Hospital (CGH) in Manila.

Ramos said Napa sustained the most serious injury having been hit in the forehead by a bullet from a caliber .45 pistol which exited near his left ear. Napa has been placed at the intensive care unit of the CGH.

Casungcao sustained a gunshot wound in the right leg while Alvarez was hit in the left arm.

The slain suspect could be one Victor Escaler, 33, of Kagitingan street, Tondo, Manila, based on a document found in his wallet. Ramos, however, said his identity could not be immediately confirmed.

Police reports said the incident occurred at about 9:30 p.m. as the policemen were conducting a routine checkpoint at the corner of Lapu-Lapu and Pampano streets. Napa flagged down the tricycle, driven by Darwin Sacdalan, 25, married, a native of Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija, with the four suspects on board.

As the policemen approached, the four suspects wearing black long-sleeved "Bantay Bayan" shirts, drew their guns and started firing. Napa fell backwards with a gunshot in the forehead. The other cops fired back at the fleeing suspects on board the commandeered tricycle despite being wounded. When the smoke cleared after five minutes, one suspect lay dead.

The policemen were taken by residents to the hospital while the slain suspect was pronounced dead on arrival at the PBM.

Recovered at the scene was a caliber .45 pistol with one magazine and five live bullets. Also found on the slain suspect’s possession was a small bottle with Latin inscriptions and filled with oil, apparently worn as an amulet.

Sacdalan said the four held him at gunpoint and ordered him to drive past the police checkpoint.

It was gathered that Bantay Bayan was organic to Makati City so Ramos immediately coordinated with the Makati police and got positive results. Ramos later bared that Edgardo Nieva, 29, of Camarines street, Sta. Cruz, was apprehended after the Makati police caught up with the suspects.

While under investigation, Nieva identified his cohorts as Orlando Gapat and Andrew Jimenez and admitted they were the same group that engaged the Malabon police in a shootout Thursday night.

Gapat and Jimenez are now being tracked down by a joint Makati-Malabon police team.

Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco cited the four Malabon cops for their bravery, saying they showed remarkable courage in their pursuit of President Arroyo’s directive of an all-out war against criminality and epitomize the new breed of cops in the Metro Manila police force.

Of the four cops, only Ortega was unscathed from the run-in with the felons. But, like Makati City police officer Aristotle Tacata, who was slain while single-handedly fighting off a group of robbers in a convenience store, the Malabon cops put their lives on the line true to their sworn duty to serve and protect the citizenry and prevented the suspects from stealing a tricycle.

"No act is so small when it comes to protecting the life and securing the property of the people we serve. The bravery these men displayed is an inspiration to each member of the National Capital Region Police Office and exemplifies the willingness of every PNP personnel to die for his country and the citizenry in the call of duty," Velasco said.

The cops will be awarded with the Medalya ng Sugatang Magiting and will all be considered for promotion to the next rank. Medical assistance has been provided to the cops, particularly Napa, who remains in critical condition.