Fiscal junks illegal gun possession raps vs female "intelligence agent"

DUMAGUETE CITY ,Philippines  – A woman claiming to be a civilian agent of a military intelligence unit and who was arrested last month for allegedly trying to smuggle a gun inside the district jail in Bayawan City, Negros Oriental was released after a prosecutor dismissed the complaint of illegal gun possession filed against her by the police.

City Police chief, Sr. Insp. Teddy Picardal, said Teresa Balungcas, a resident of Barangay Maninihon in Bayawan City, claimed that she was a civilian agent of the 7th Regional Intelligence and Security Unit (RISU) of the Philippine Army based at Camp Lapu-Lapu in Cebu City.

Balungcas further claimed to be the wife of a certain M/Sgt. Balungcas, assigned to the same military intelligence unit, Picardal said.

She was released from detention a day after Bayawan City Prosecutor Peter Balbuena, during the preliminary investigation on Wednesday, dismissed the complaint filed against her. Balbuena, in his resolution dismissing the complaint, cited a similar case in Bohol involving a civilian agent of the military who was also able to present “legitimate” documents, Picardal said.

Picardal said Balungcas had attached to her counter-affidavit another copy of Memorandum Order (MO) Number 7ISU-CA701-063 (dated 01 January 2012) issued by the 7th RISU and signed by a certain Major Hernan Santos.

This time, the attached MO bore the correct serial number (SN 879280) of the KG 9-mm machine pistol that was allegedly found from Balungcas’ possession last February 14 at the Bayawan City jail, said Picardal.

Earlier, Negros Oriental Provincial Police director Sr. Supt. Edward Carranza had told reporters that Balungcas, at the time of her arrest, had presented two MOs, allegedly from RISU, but the serial number of the firearms indicated in the documents did not match with that of the actual gun seized from her.

All three MOs in her name indicated the same date of issuance, MO sequence number and name and signature of the issuing officer, Picardal said.

After the dismissal of the complaint, the Bayawan Police immediately filed a motion for reconsideration, citing the unusual issuance of the three MOs on the same date by the same person from the same military intelligence unit but with different contents, Picardal said.

BJMP personnel apprehended Balungcas during routine inspection of visitors and found allegedly in her possession the gun, two magazine clips and 30 rounds of live ammunition

Responding policemen later reported that Balungcas had wanted to visit an inmate, Jasper Tanasan, a suspected gun-for-hire who was arrested early this year, to inquire from him the whereabouts of her son, Benjie Balungcas.

Benjie had gone missing since November 2010, and there were reports that the group of Tanasan could have been involved in his disappearance.