5 hurt in QC grenade attack

Five persons were hurt after two men on board a scooter hurled a grenade at a building along Timog Avenue in Quezon City early yesterday.

Hurt in the attack were taxi driver Ernesto Aparicio and his passenger Leo Lim, who were taken to the Capitol Medical Center. The taxi was alongside the scooter just before the grenade exploded.

The three other victims were identified as Ariel Liderato, who was taken to the East Avenue Medical Center; Peper Mortal and a certain Renato, who were rushed to the Delgado Hospital. They were treated for injuries caused by shrapnel from the grenade.

Initial investigation showed that the incident happened about 2:30 a.m. The blast also damaged three vehicles, including Aparicio’s cab.

Police have conducted a follow-up investigation to establish the motive for the attack.

Meanwhile, police reported that three men barged into a condominium unit last Tuesday in Quezon City then hogtied and gagged a businessman and his two secretaries after emptying the vault of P720,000 in cash.

Unfortunately for the robbers, condo security guard Renato Etcobanez heard the commotion inside the unit. He dialed the emergency Hotline 117 of the Department of Interior and Local Government and reported a possible robbery in progress.

The operator forwarded the report to the Police Station 10 of the Central Police District in Kamuning, Quezon City. Station commander Superintendent Cesar Binag then dispatched a three-man team to the area.

In three minutes, two of the suspects — John Paul Taub and Allan Sauza were arrested.

The third suspect, an unidentified Korean national, escaped with the loot.

Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynadlo Velasco commended Binag and his men for the speedy arrest of the suspects. "It was proven once again that the active participation of the citizenry is a big boost to the police drive against criminality," said Velasco, who mobilized 23,000 security guards in Metro Manila to serve as the police "force multipliers" in the anti-crime campaign.

In his report to Velasco, Binag said Taub and the Korean suspect forcibly entered the offices of Tony Kim, president of Highest Tech Philippines at Unit 609 of the Lansdale Tower on Mother Ignacia street at 11:30 a.m. They announced the robbery while Sauza acted as lookout.

At gunpoint, the suspects hogtied Kim’s secretaries Maylette de Jesus and Girlie Saligue using a nylon cord. The Korean suspect forced Kim to open the vault then took the cash.

The suspects then hogtied Kim and gagged him and his secretaries with masking tape inside the comfort room.

The suspects were still scouring the place for other valuables when the call was received by the Hotline 117 operator.

Inspector Edwin Faycho, SPO4 Renato Campanilla and PO3 Rogelio Pahati caught Taub and Sauza inside the condo unit. The unidentified Korean national, who was using a surgical mask, escaped by jumping out of a window. Taub, of Antipolo City, yielded a caliber .38 revolver.

Taub and Sauza are undergoing tactical interrogation to possibly identify and arrest the Korean suspect.

Charges of robbery are being readied against the two before the Quezon City prosecutor’s office. – With Non Alquitran