Vigilantes strike again

Vigilantes struck again last Thursday night in Ermita, Manila, and left behind three alleged car thieves strangled to death inside a stolen white Suzuki Vitara sports utility van.

It was the third time that the vigilantes struck at the city’s bustling tourist belt district.

Police said the three still unidentified victims, who were found inside the van with plate number NJV-656 at about 11:30 p.m. at the corner of J. Nakpil and Vasquez Streets. Investigators later discovered that the van belonged to a certain Imelda Avila of Marikina City and was registered as TSY-198.

Investigators said the three men bore strangulation marks and welts on their necks and wrists, similar to those also found on three other dead men believed to have been victims of the vigilante group.

"It was similar to two summary executions but this has some differences. We are investigating this to see if this was the handiwork of the same group or if another group merely copied the modus operandi," said Western Police District (WPD) director Chief Superintendent Nicolas Pasinos Jr.

Investigators also theorized that the victims could have been killed elsewhere and was only dumped in Ermita. "There is a big probability that the victims were killed elsewhere and then brought to Ermita," Pasinos said.

Police described one of the victims as between 30 to 40 years old, about 5’4" to 5’5" tall, heavily built and with balding hair. He was wearing a light brown leather cap marked "Anghil-Deever Rodriguez." The first victim was found wearing a white T-shirt, white brief, a pair of blue denims, and slippers. A homemade caliber .38 revolver with one live bullet and three empty shells was also found near him. Looped around his neck was a cardboard sign written with "Pag holdaper patay (Holduppers will be killed)."

Police described the second victim as between 20 to 26 years old, about 5’4" tall with a birthmark in the right thigh. He was wearing a blue ball cap, blue T-shirt, blue shorts, and slippers when found. Found tucked in his waist was a caliber .38 revolver with three bullets. A cardboard sign written with "Huwag Magnakaw (Don’t rob)" was also looped around his neck.

The third victim was described by police as between 30 and 35 years old, about 5’5" tall, with a moustache and balding hair. He also bore a Sputnik Gang tattoo in the right shoulder and a skull tattoo in right thigh. Police said a fan knife was tucked in his right waistline. A cardboard sign written with "Holdaper kami (We are holdup men)" was also found looped around his neck.

Last March 5, the body of a heavily-tattooed man, later identified by police as Silverio Amoyan, 32, of Sta. Monica, Bulacan, was dumped near the entrance of a popular mall in Padre Faura Street.

Amoyan also bore welt marks in the neck, wrists and legs. He also had a cardboard sign looped around his neck. Written on the sign was "Turista huwag holdapin, alagaan Ativan (gang) susunod (Don’t rob tourists. Ativan gang your next)." The Ativan Gang of robbers gained notoriety for luring their victims into drinking drinks laced with Ativan, a sedative, and then robbing them while they are unconscious.

One week later, police again stumbled on the bodies of Uri Lalic, 16; and Ramon Artigas, 26. The two victims were dumped on the sidewalk along Aldegoa Street in Malate. Placed on top of Artigas’ body was a small cardboard sign scribbled with the words "Ako’y salot ng turista (I prey on tourists)." Police, however, said that Lalic and Artigas could be victims of a "copy-cat" killer.