Looting difficult to prove — NBI

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) began its investigation into the alleged looting that took place in establishments at the Ayala Center in Makati City where mutinous soldiers had been holed up for 22 hours last Sunday.

Some investigators handling the case said guards whom they interviewed hinted that the looting at the Ayala Center and Oakwood Premier Suites "may not be the soldiers’ doing."

"The soldiers who took part in the siege were behaved," said an investigator on condition of anonymity. "As far as Oakwood was concerned, they did not touch the food there. They brought their own provisions."

STAR reporters, who managed to get inside Oakwood at the time of the mutiny, saw boxes of canned goods and containers of drinking water brought by the soldiers inside the posh hotel.

The investigator also noted that some stalls which lost merchandise reported seeing "IOU lists" allegedly left behind by Magdalo soldiers who took several items. "The lists indicated that the soldiers intended to pay. It shows they were disciplined. In a way, it adds to their credibility."

When asked about the possibility that "responding" law enforcers could have been involved in the looting in Makati City, the investigator responded: "It’s possible."

"After the mutiny was over, all the soldiers left the area. Who do you think entered the apartments and the commercial complex after that?" asked the investigator.

Malacañang ordered the NBI to conduct thorough investigation into the alleged looting, stemming from complaints of several stall owners who claimed to have lost some merchandise after the mutiny.

Last Thursday, the NBI filed charges against 321 soldiers who took part in the Makati City siege. The bureau also filed charges against former senior deputy executive secretary Ramon Cardenas for allegedly helping the mutineers by allowing them to stay at his house in Makati City.

NBI Director Reynaldo Wycoco said the bureau is now gathering evidence against suspected civilian backers of the mutiny so that charges could be filed against them in court.