THE two individuals riding on a motorcycle who stole valuable items from their victim outside the Enriquez Compound in Barangay Punta Princesa, Cebu City, have already been identified.
The motorcycle driver was identified as Jezer Setosta Banzon, 43, of Barangay Quiot, Cebu City, and his female backrider only known by her alias Ericka.
Several individuals went to Labangon Police Station to provide information after the incident was reported on social media.
According to Police Major Angelito Valleser, chief of Labangon Police Station, one of the informants was a collector of the motorcycle dealer, where the vehicle was bought on installment.
The collector gave police investigators a picture of Banzon’s motorcycle.
“The suspect was identified due to his reputation here for being a tough guy. The motorcycle collector, who is also our friend, was the one who recognized him and the motorcycle he was riding on,” Valleser said in Cebuano.
‘PDEA agent’
Initial information received by the police was that the suspect would introduce himself as an asset of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA 7) and then take the belongings of his target after being searched.
But Valleser said they still have to verify the said information.
According to Valleser, Ericka was already known to them since she had gone to the police station when her boyfriend was imprisoned there because of illegal drugs.
“One thing we know for sure is that Ericka’s boyfriend is a drug personality, who was detained here, which is how my men came to know her,” Valleser said.
For its part, the PDEA 7 will investigate Banzon’s claim that he was a PDEA asset.
According to Leia Alcantara, information officer of PDEA 7, they had not seen the man in their office.
Banzon and Ericka went viral on social media after they took the personal belongings of Brian Labrador, a resident of Enriquez Compound.
The incident that took place past 11 a.m. last Sunday, July 30, was caught on a CCTV camera in the area and was later uploaded online by Punta Princesa barangay captain Eleno Andales Jr.
According to Labrador, he left the house on Sunday to find a dental clinic to have his damaged tooth extracted.
However, as most dental clinics are closed on Sundays, he was unable to find any and decided to return home.
But when he arrived in his residence, the suspects approached him, searched him, took his cellphone and wallet containing P4,900 in cash, and then departed aboard a motorcycle.
The police are currently looking for the culprits who remain at large. (AYB / TPT)