Wednesday, April 25, 2007 2 'RPA men' collared for gun possession By Suzette T. Quingco
TWO alleged members of the breakaway Revolutionary Proletarian Army-Alex Boncayao Brigade (RPA-ABB) were arrested for driving a motorcycle without a plate number in a checkpoint operation in Barangay Mansilingan Thursday afternoon.
Bacolod City Police Director Ronilo Quebrar identified the suspects as Russel Porras of La Castellana town and Rudy Bahin of Barangay Ginbalaon, Silay City.
In his regular press conference Friday, Quebrar confirmed that both Porras and Bahin are members of the RPA-ABB.
Quebrar said through "Oplan Sita," which includes the checking of vehicles without plate number, both suspects were spotted.
"Because of the Oplan Sita, the City Mobile Group (CMG) first discovered that the motorcycle driven by Bahin does not have a plate number and upon further inspection, a .45 caliber pistol was retrieved from Bahin's companion," he said.
Quebrar, however, said they still have to verify if Porras has a license to carry firearm.
"We confiscated the firearm and we need to check on this to confirm if it is covered by a license or a special permit," he said.
Quebrar said Oplan Sita is also part of Task Force Barakuda created to curb occurrence of robbery and hold up cases in Bacolod.
On record, there were already nine cases of hold-up incidents that happened in the city. Among those victimized were three gasoline and retail businesses owned by Indian nationals.
"We could not yet finalize if the gun has a license but we are going to detain these two persons for the meantime," Quebrar added.
