CIDG files charges vs brokerage firm robbers

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) is set to file criminal charges against five arrested members of the Bulawin Robbery Group involved in last Thursday’s foiled heist at a brokerage firm in Intramuros, Manila.

CIDG chief Director Jesus Verzosa said Edwin Saavedra, Buenaventura Almeda, Allan Huanico, Reynante Agquiz and Rodney Santos will be charged with robbery, homicide and illegal possession of firearms.

Police will present as evidence recovered items from the suspects, including a Glock caliber .45 pistol, a homemade caliber .38 caliber revolver, a Smith & Wesson caliber .38 revolver, a 9mm Feg pistol, two caliber .45 Norinco pistols, four cellular phones and several military identification cards.

Police are now hunting down other members of the group. Rolando Bulawin from the Philippine Navy and Private First Class Ruben Aquino were gunned down by CIDG and PNP Special Action Force men during a follow-up operation in Pasig City, and not in Intramuros as earlier reported.

A CIDG agent, identified as Police Officer 2 Michael Buenaventura, died in the shootout in Pasig after suspects Bulawin and Aquino opened fire on the lawmen.

The PNP leadership will accord a hero’s burial for Buenaventura after he was killed while performing his duty as a law enforcer.

"We are just waiting for the recommendations from the CIDG leadership under Director Verzosa," he added.

In his report to Verzosa, Task Force Maverick chief Senior Superintendent Allen Bantolo said that continuous efforts to arrest and prosecute the still at-large members of the Bulawin Group will be conducted by his office.

"Continuous efforts will be conducted to identify and arrest three suspects who acted as lookouts and were positioned at the vicinity of the Certified Brokerage Corp.office during the robbery incident," Bantolo said.

According to Bantolo, Task Force Maverick operatives received information that members of the Bulawin robbery gang was about to hit a brokerage firm in Intramuros, prompting him to deploy police agents in the area under "Oplan Armageddon."

While conducting surveillance operations, Task Force Maverick along with other police teams — CIDG Special Reaction Unit and Crisis Response Group-Special Action Force (CRG-SAF) — heard gunshots, prompting them to proceed to the brokerage office where they were fired upon by the suspects.

Two employees of the brokerage firm — Perservando Calibo and Alberto Sarmiento — were wounded in the incident, reports said.

Bulawin and Aquino, both reportedly on AWOL status — and two others managed to escape from the scene when they commandeered a taxicab.

Bantolo’s men later traced the whereabouts of the two through information provided by their five arrested cohorts and text messages.

At 2:45 p.m., the Task Force Maverick elements caught up with Bulawin’s group along Market Avenue in Barangay Palatiw in Pasig City where the shootout took place. Bulawin, Aquino and PO3 Buenaventura were killed while PO2 Antolin Gerolia of the CIDG-SRU was wounded in the incident.