Manila cops commended for capture of ex-rebel leader

Five operatives of the Western Police District (WPD)’s Homicide Section will receive plaques of commendation today for the capture of an alleged rebel leader long wanted for the gruesome robbery slaying of a father and son in Sta. Cruz, Manila in 1991.

Homicide Section chief Senior Inspector Dominador Arevalo Jr., Inspectors Gil Corpuz and Rolando Mendoza, SPO3 Danny Vidad and PO3 Carlos Santos were responsible for the arrest last week of Roberto Mendez, alias Baldo Mendez, Baldo Noda and Ka Baldo, 43, a former ranking member of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the Bicol Region.

Mendez is allegedly one of the five suspects who robbed and killed Regino Palacio and his son, Joel, on the night of July 26, 1991 along Hizon st., Sta. Cruz, Manila.

Mendez and his cohorts were reportedly doing construction work at the house of the victims when the crime was committed. After the murder, all the suspects went into hiding.

Armed with a warrant of arrest issued by Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 50 issued by Judge Senecio Ortile, Arevalo tasked the four policemen to go to Pio Duran town in Ligao, Albay on information that Mendez was sighted in the area.

After coordinating with Chief Inspector Wilson Asueta of the Albay Provincial Police Office, WPD operatives found that the suspect was employed as a contractual worker at the municipal hall.

The suspect was arrested by the Manila police while attending a flag ceremony in front of the municipal hall. The team immediately went back to Manila after receiving reports that NPA rebels were on their way to free their comrade.

According to Arevalo, the suspect had been on the loose for 14 years and was able to elude the law by seeking the protection of his former rebel comrades in Bicol.

The WPD also learned that the suspect was only charged with illegal possession of firearms during his arrest as an NPA rebel in 1995. He was able to serve his sentence until 1998 but his pending murder case in Manila was overlooked by the provincial courts.

Upon Mendez’s release in 1998, he was hired as a bodyguard of several local politicians until he was employed as a casual worker at the municipal hall.

Arevalo named the suspect’s accomplices in the robbery as Allan Atendido, Serafin dela Lingco, Ruben Nunez and Constantino Ibanez.