Passenger with guns, ammo nabbed at NAIA

A Taipei-bound Taiwanese passenger, whose bag yielded six guns and live ammunition, was arrested yesterday by Bureau of Customs and Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group operatives at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal I (NAIA-1).

Superintendent Pablo Francisco Balagtas, the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group’s 1st Philippine Civil Aviation Security Group chief, identified the arrested passenger as Peng Wen-ching, 41.

Peng was carrying a Taiwanese passport with serial number 211458789. He was set to board EVA Air’s Manila to Taipei Flight BR 272 departing before noon.

Balagtas said Peng is now under the custody of the PNP-PCAS for investigation.

He was arrested by Police Officer 2 Alexis Fradejas and Senior Police Officer 2 Romulo Olarte and BOC-NAIA examiner Bara Lidasan III when his trolley bag was found to contain several guns and ammunition while undergoing baggage X-ray scan at the pre-departure Customs area of NAIA at around 10:45 a.m.

Upon seeing the guns on the X-ray monitor, airport officers brought Peng along with his trolley bag and other baggage to Balagtas’ office.

His bag, which was securely shut with a lock, was then opened.

Balagtas told The Star that Peng initially refused to open the trolley bag and had even bribed him in exchange for his immediate release.

Inside the bag were three caliber .22 Phoenix Arms revolvers, two caliber .25 Beretta pistols, and one caliber .45 Springfield Armory revolver along with 1,200 pieces of assorted live ammunition.

Peng refused to talk and have his picture taken by media men.

He irked airport officials even more when he insisted on smoking a pipe at the PNP-PCAS headquarters.

Balagtas said they are looking into the possibility that Peng could have been planning to hijack a plane.

"That’s a possibility. He could have easily carried his trolley bag with him inside the plane as hand-carried luggage," Balagtas said.

He said that they will also be forwarding the case to Interpol which could undertake a review of the EVA Air flight manifesto and check its passenger profiles for Peng’s possible cohorts among them.