HPG uncovers more vehicles stolen by Dominguez group

MANILA, Philippines -  The Highway Patrol Group (HPG) has uncovered more vehicles allegedly stolen and sold to unsuspecting buyers by the notorious Dominguez car theft gang.

Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina, HPG chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said investigators are now conducting the tedious process of records verification to reconcile the database of stolen motor vehicles with car registration records transferred to new owners.

Espina said among public records being sought by HPG investigators include Deeds of Sale executed by a certain Enrique Carl Lopez on the sale of stolen motor vehicles sold by the Dominguez group.

“HPG intelligence listed Enrique Carl Lopez as among the aliases used by Roger Santos Dominguez, one of the suspected ring leaders of the Dominguez group now in police custody,” he said.

Both Roger and his brother Raymond are now locked up in jail for their alleged link with the murder of car trader Venson Evangelista.

Although police were suspecting that the brothers and their members were also behind the killing of car trader Emerson Lozano and his co-employee Ernani Sensil, investigators could not find concrete evidence against them to the twin murder.

Espina has fielded tracker teams to trace the ownership of stolen vehicles sold by the Dominguez carnapping group to unsuspecting buyers.

He learned about the modus operandi of the group after the HPG impounded a Toyota Hilux sports utility truck with spurious documents.

He said the possessor of the vehicle was applying for motor vehicle clearance from HPG last week in Cagayan de Oro City.

“Upon macro etching examination, the vehicle was confirmed as included in the list of stolen motor vehicles under Alarm Number 20090305015 stolen along McArthur Highway in  Minalin, Pampanga and owned by Virgilio Mangisel,” said Espina.

He said the buyer of the stolen car presented a Deed of Absolute Sale signed by Lopez with photocopies of the driver’s license and ID of the alleged vendor.

Espina noted that the vendor’s drivers license and ID had the pictures of Roger Dominguez, purportedly President of Mega-agri Products Inc.

He reiterated his advise to prospective buyers of used cars to verify first with HPG before entering into any transaction involving the sale of used cars to avoid being victimized by carnapping syndicates.