Bus marshals snare 3 robbers

Secret marshals, deployed by the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) to ride public utility buses (PUBs), tipped off the presence of three armed men who were robbing a bus along EDSA to a police team waiting at a station in Cubao, where they were later arrested.

Quezon City police intelligence chief Superintendent Roger James Brillantes, in a report to QCPD director Chief Superintendent Nicasio Radovan Jr., said the robbery took place inside a Corinthian Lines bus at around 9 a.m.

The suspects, identified as Rolando Javier, Rodney Abbas and Edwin Resonable, announced a holdup as the Fairview-bound bus passed Corinthian Gardens on EDSA at 9 a.m.

The three men were armed with knives and caliber .22 revolvers. One suspect even fired a shot before divesting passengers of cell phones, cash and other valuables.

A pair of bus detectives, who were able to hide their firearms and cell phones, did not engage the suspects to prevent a shootout inside the bus.

Instead, they relayed information to police operatives, who waited for the bus to stop at a station in Cubao.

As the trio stepped out of the bus, they were met by a team of officers, who arrested them. The bus marshal team was led by Superintendent David Allauigan and Inspector Dante Yang.

Brillantes said the suspects are members of the Otso Pares robbery group, which preys on PUBs on EDSA and other routes in Metro Manila.

Radovan said the deployment of secret marshals and bus detectives is part of the intensified campaign being implemented by the QCPD to neutralize various criminal groups operating in the city.

"Our operatives are now tracking down other members of the robbery group," Radovan said.