4 car thieves slain in Bulacan

MALOLOS CITY — Four car thieves were killed in a shootout with the police in Sta. Maria, Bulacan after a high-speed car chase before dawn yesterday.

Police spotted the men aboard a stolen red Toyota Corolla along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City, but the suspects refused to stop, leading to an hour-long chase that ended in a confrontation in Barangay Bagbaguin, Sta. Maria town.

The slain suspects were identified as Cris Orsal, 32; Ronnie Fernando, 33; Jimbo Calunod Guigue, 29; and Rolando Apostol Patalia, 52.

Two M-16 rifles and two caliber .38 revolvers were recovered from the slain suspects, police said.

The four were believed to be members of the so-called "Abuyog Gang," reportedly led by Orsal, tagged in a string of car thefts in the capital as well as the kidnapping of Coca-Cola executive Betti Chua-Sy in 2003.

Sy was forcibly taken after she refused to get out of her vehicle. She later died of a gunshot wound, her body dumped in a highway near Manila Bay.

Sy’s death triggered public outrage and forced a major government crackdown on criminal gangs. — Dino Balabo, Ric Sapnu, Cecille Suerte Felipe and AFP