Negros politician funds Metro robbery gang

A politician from Negros is reportedly funding a robbery gang operating in Metro Manila, police said yesterday following the arrest of two alleged gangmen.

“We received information that a politician in Negros is acting as a financier of this robbery group,” Superintendent Franklin Moises Mabanag, Quezon City police Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit chief, told The STAR.

Police arrested Edgar Mellama and Kenny Relos last Nov. 5 during a stakeout of a house in Dupax Compound, Barangay Bagbag in Novaliches,

Mellama and Relos, who are residents of Dasmariñas, Cavite, are originally from Escalante, Negros Occidental.

When they were arrested, police seized from them an Armscor .38 caliber revolver and an MK4 fragmentation grenade.

A team led by Superintendent Antonio Yarra and Chief Inspector Enrico Figueroa conducted the stakeout after receiving a tip that a robbery gang was using a house owned by a certain Pat as a hideout, Figueroa said.

Two witnesses to a recent robbery at the Balintawak branch of Wilcon Builders have identified Mellama and Relos as among those who barged into the store, Figueroa added.

Mellama has pending arrest warrants issued by a Negros Occidental court for murder, illegal possession of firearm, and theft cases earlier this year, Figueroa said.

On the other hand, Relos has arrest warrants for robbery and car theft, also issued by a court in Negros Occidental.

Police are still trying to locate the cohorts of Mellama and Relos, known only as Jun, Calag, and Raco, and the owner of the safehouse, Figueroa said.

It is also possible that the suspects may have links with communist rebels, Mabanag said.

He added that Mellama claimed to be a civilian agent of the Philippine Army.

“People like them pose as law enforcers like agents of the Philippine National Police or the military or NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) or PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency),” he told The STAR. “They get (identification cards) from these agencies to avoid being apprehended.”