Civilian ‘asset' facing
multiple criminal raps

Charges for illegal possession of a firearm, an explosive, and ammunition, were filed against the man who claimed to be a civilian asset of the Philippine National Police Regional Mobile Group Wednesday, the police said yesterday.

Charged at the City Prosecutor's Office Wednesday, was Marcelino Castillo, 54, Police Station 2 investigator, PO3 Julius Lagon, said.

Castillo, who claimed to be a civilian informant of the PNP-RMG, was arrested by PO3 Rodrigo Juayang at the compound of the Land Transportation Office, after a hand grenade fell from his pocket.

At the police precinct later, a .45 caliber pistol with a magazine containing eight bullets was also confiscated from Castillo, a native of Victorias City , Negros Occidental.

Castillo reportedly said he carried the weapons because of threats to his life.

Supt. Remus Canieso, chief of the 6th PNP-RMG in Victorias City , said he does not know Castillo personally and their intelligence division does not have records on him either.*PP

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Snatcher nabbed

A cellphone snatcher was apprehended after a chase by responding policemen at 18 th Lacson Street , in Bacolod City at about 9:15 a.m. yesterday.

P03 Julius Lagon identified the suspect as Wilfredo Palmes Gonzales, 27, of Purok Lubi, in Barangay 3.

Diane Rose Tampioc, of Sto. Niño Ville Subdivision, Silay City , Negros Occidental, and a third year nursing student of Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod told the police that she was walking along the street with friends near a surplus store behind the CSA-B, when the suspect suddenly grabbed her Nokia 6070 cellphone and ran away.

A group of trisikad drivers and bystanders, who heard Tampioc asking for help, ran after Gonzales that prompted him to leave the stolen item.

Policemen who were on patrol duty chased the suspect, and cornered him at 18 th Lacson.

The apprehending officers were P02 Richard Delasa, P01s Eduardo Clarete Jr., Rustom Dagui and Rex Capapas.

Gonzales is now locked at Bacolod Police Station 2, pending the filing of charges against him.*HLGarciniego

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Police Beat Title 3

Police yesterday declared the death of a chief security officer assigned at the Southern Negros Development Corp. Sugar Central in Kabankalan City as “case closed”, after the identification and filing of robbery with murder charges against the two suspects who are scrap iron scavengers.

Supt. Calixto Mabugat, Kabankalan police chief, yesterday identified the two suspects as Ali Navales and Agapito Longakit, both residents of the barangay.

Serafin Nuñez, chief security officer of Lanting Security Agency detailed at SONEDCO Sugar Central, was shot dead by two unidentified gunmen on Tuesday in Brgy. Linao, Kabankalan City .

The gunmen also took the 9mm pistol, a two-way radio handset and a cellular phone of Nuñez, before fleeing.

Mabugat said the identification and filing of charges against the two suspects was made possible through the cooperation of witnesses who executed affidavits.

Police investigations also showed that the killing of Nuñez was job-related, as he strictly implemented the management policy against those arrested for stealing scrap iron at the SONEDCO Sugar Central.

Mabugat, however, said the two suspects are nowhere to be found.*GPB

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