Daring heist in Makati

Police are now on the hunt for five to seven suspected members of the notorious Martilyo Gang robbery following an afternoon heist in the middle of one of Makati City’s busiest roads yesterday.

The assailants, armed with handguns and rifles, robbed Nicandro Navarette, 64, liaison officer of international money transfer company Currency Connection, of some P471,000 that he and his driver, Jaime del Monte, withdrew from an International Exchange Bank branch at the corner of Makati Avenue and Buendia around 1:30 p.m.

Reports said the robbers, who wore bonnets, blocked the victim’s Toyota Corolla sedan minutes after they left the bank.

They smashed the windows of the victim’s car with a hammer and grabbed the knapsack containing the money along with other items like documents, training manuals, and the like.

They initially made their getaway in a Mitsubishi Lancer (TBK 300) and then made good their escape by transferring to motorcycles meters away from the scene.

Police are pointing a finger at the Martilyo Gang because of the way the attackers used a hammer to smash the victim’s car windows.

Senior Police Officer 4 Danny Diaz, chief of the Makati City Police’s follow-up operations section, said witnesses saw the robbers point a gun at a Department of Public Safety (DPS) traffic enforcer who tried to stop the suspects’ vehicle after it went through a red light.

Diaz said investigators are trying to determine if the robbery was an inside job because it seemed that the robbers knew when to strike and what to take.