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Friday, June 20, 2003
Ex-cop nabbed as 'brain' of P15-M heist
By Ernie N. Olson Jr. and Harley F. Palangchao
CAMP DANGWA -- A former policeman, who was alleged to be one of the masterminds in the daring P15-million Landbank robbery in Abatan, Buguias, Benguet, last March 25, was presented to Chief Supt. Victor Luga, director of the Police Regional Office in the Cordilleras (PRO-CAR), and members of the media Thursday morning.
This resulted after Marcelino Nginhina, 39, married, a former member of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and supply officer of the Ifugao Provincial Police Office was arrested by intelligence operatives of the Benguet PPO in his hometown Wednesday afternoon.
Senior Supt. Conrado Miņano, Benguet PPO director, revealed Thursday that Nginhina, who was discharged from the police service after going absent without official leave (Awol) sometime in 1997, was arrested by a team led by Chief Insps. Florencio Camuyot and Cambay in his house at Cabaroguis, Quirino province, around 4 p.m. of June 18.
Cambay said that although "the suspect tried to resist a little, he was easily subdued," when presented with the warrant for his arrest.
Miņano told reporters that Nginhina had been the subject of heightened surveillance operations days after what he described to be part of the biggest bank vehicle heist in recent memory.
Miņano added that monitoring and surveillance was being continued in line with their determined attempt to arrest the remaining six suspects, who were believed to be hiding either in the Cordillera or the Ilocos Region.
The group of Nginhina, according to Miņano, is believed to be only part of a notorious crime syndicate involved in robbery incidents in Ilocos Sur and Cordillera.
"We believe that he is only one of the masterminds or leaders of the robbery gang because evidence shows that the heist was done by a combination of two separate gangs," he said.
Benguet Gov. Raul Molintas explained that the evidence presented to them Thursday shows that Nginhina's gang provided the "muscle," while the leader of the other gang that composed the same robbery syndicate provided vital information and the logistics to pull off the heist.
"But, although only seven suspects were reported to have had direct involvement in this Landbank robbery, we believe that there could have been more, at least ten members all-in-all, to include those who acted as lookouts," he claimed.
"Now, it will be up to the court which issued his warrant, to decide on whether the arrested suspect will be detained at the Benguet Provincial Jail or be held in detention at Camp Dangwa," Molintas clarified.
Luga, for his part, revealed to reporters that some former policemen were also discovered to have links with the group of Nginhina.
Luga described the reported involvement of former policemen in heinous crimes Thursday, particularly in highway robberies, as alarming.
It may be recalled that seven heavily armed men held up a white double-crew pick-up owned by the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) at Sitio Bayoyo, Abatan, Buguias, in a daring afternoon heist.
These men, at gunpoint, snatched two large boxes from the pick-up containing about P15-million in cash, which was being delivered then from the Landbank branch in Baguio City to another branch in Bontoc, Mt. Province.
They got away in a gray Toyota Tamaraw FX van by driving north towards Abatan, sped past the police station there and turned right towards Loo valley in a dramatic getaway.
Amateur radio groups monitored the chase as the hold-up gang sped along Loo.
The police chased them but gave up as the gang brandished a grenade launcher in their direction.
According to eyewitness, the gang stopped at Cayapes, Buguias, where a backhoe blocked the road with rocks and escaped on foot after setting their getaway van and other vehicles on fire.
The Tamaraw FX was later found to have had tampered motor, chassis and license plate numbers after being carnapped somewhere in Region 2 or the Cagayan area.
The gang men were reportedly armed with M-16 armalite rifles, two M-14 rifles, two shotguns seized from bank security guards and a grenade launcher.
Meanwhile, the PRO-CAR is calling all possible victims of robbery to come out into the open to identify if the arrested robber was one of those who victimized them previously.
(June 20, 2003 issue)
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