Pasay cops rescue baby from hostage taker

Forever haunted by the memory of the May 31 botched hostage rescue operation, Pasay City policemen, led by their chief, rescued the other night an eight-month-old boy held at knifepoint by a drug-crazed relative.

Lawmen arrested suspect Gerald Eralino, 26, and recovered the 11-inch kitchen knife that he held against the back and neck of young Joseph Eralino as he cradled him in his arms.

The victim sustained minor wounds on the neck and was rushed to a nearby hospital. Two of the responding policemen, Police Senior Inspector Lerpon Platon, chief of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), and PO3 Baltazar Agustin, suffered wounds on their hands and arms as they pried the weapon from the suspect.

"We kept on thinking about the Philtranco incident and prayed that this time, we would be successful," said Inspector Jose Mansalungan, one of the responding police officers.

Last May 31, hostage Dexter Balala, 4, was killed along with his abductor in a botched rescue attempt at the Philtranco bus terminal in Pasay City. The incident sparked public outrage, resulting in the filing of homicide charges against 22 Pasay policemen.

Sunday’s one-hour hostage drama was a redemption of sorts for the city’s lawmen.

The victim’s mother, Christina Eralino told investigators the suspect arrived at their house on E. Reyes Street at around 3 p.m. to talk to her husband, who was his uncle.

While waiting for his uncle, the suspect went up the second floor of the house and played with the baby. He cradled the boy in his arms and rocked him to sleep.

When the mother tried to take the baby from Eralino, the suspect refused, saying he would wait for his uncle.

To her horror, she saw the suspect holding a knife against her son’s back. She also told investigators that Eralino’s eyes were red and he kept on talking to himself.

Still holding the baby, the suspect then casually went out and proceeded to the house of their neighbor, Diosdado Gape Sr., which was some 500 meters away. The mother immediately sought the assistance of barangay leaders and the police.

Eralino was already on the second floor when policemen, led by Senior Superintendent Oscar Catalan and Superintendent Amante Bersamin, Pasay City police chief and deputy police chief, respectively, arrived.

Senior Inspector Jaime Avilla and barangay chairman Chuck San Juan negotiated with the suspect.

Unknown to Eralino, four other policemen, led by Chief Inspector Simon Gonzales gained access to a small bedroom near the area where the suspect was holding the baby.

Negotiators tried to convince Eralino to stay in front of the window as they discussed his demands – a homemade shotgun, a glass of water, and P2,000 cash.

"But he wouldn’t stay put, perhaps thinking that a sniper might get him if he stayed in front of the window. Instead, he stayed at the far end of the room where no one could see him," Mansalungan said. "All we could hear was the baby crying."

An hour later, with the negotiations going nowhere, Catalan ordered Gonzales, through a handheld radio, to disable the suspect.

The policemen barged out of their hiding place, with one of them immediately pulling the baby away from Eralino’s arms.

"The moment we heard the commotion upstairs, another group of policemen ran up to the bedroom to help subdue the suspect and arrest him," Mansalungan said.

Cheers greeted police as they emerged with Eralino handcuffed and the baby safely in an officer’s arms.