A 10-WHEELER wing van truck from Cebu was intercepted by authorities Saturday, August 29, 2020, at the Danao Port in Barangay Old Poblacion, Escalante City, Negros Occidental, with eight guns.
Major Gil John Despi, Escalante City police chief, said that eight .45 caliber pistols were recovered at the wing van truck loaded with feeds driven by Juanito Chua of Barangay La Granja, La Carlota City.
Seven of the eight seized .45 caliber pistols wrapped in plastic and newspapers and placed inside a cartoon, were recovered behind the driver’s seat while another pistol was recovered from the possession of Chua, Despi said.
Initial investigations of the Escalante City police showed that Chua claimed that he was asked to transport the firearms from Cebu to Negros Occidental.
However, Despi said they are looking into the possibility that the delivery of essential goods from Cebu to Negros is being taken advantage by gunrunners in the transport of firearms because of instructions not to delay them, in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic.
He added when he was informed by his police counterparts in Cebu, he gathered operatives of the Highway Patrol Group and Coast Guard and intercepted the wing van truck at the designated control point in Danao, where vehicles from Cebu are being checked for unauthorized transport of locally stranded idividuals and disinfection.