Manila cops kill 5 rob suspects in a week

MANILA, Philippines - Two men suspected of robbing foreigners in Malate were killed by Manila policemen Thursday night, putting the number of robbery suspects slain in encounters with members of the Manila Police District (MPD) at five in less than a week.

Melrose Cuadra, 25, was waiting for some friends in Malate, Manila when two men on a motorcycle approached her from behind and robbed her. She sought help from an MPD Station 5 patrol team, who pursued the suspects.

Other MPD Station 5 teams monitoring the incident on radio set up a chokepoint at the corner of Mabini and Remedios streets to catch the suspects, who shot at the lawmen.

One of the slain suspects was a man aged about 25 with a tattoo of the word “Commando” on his right leg, while the other was aged about 40 to 45 with a “Sputnik” tattoo on the right side of his body.

The shootout happened a few days after MPD Station 5 police officers shot dead a suspected robber in front of the Isetann department store in Sta. Cruz before dawn Tuesday and two men caught robbing jeepney passengers along Taft Avenue Thursday night.

Police said they have increased patrols and police visibility in the University Belt, malls and public places due to numerous complaints about robberies.

The MPD recently took flak for the successive deaths of alleged robbers and several detainees, the latest of which was the alleged gun-grabbing incident involving two suspected rapists in the MPD headquarters detention center.