10 'cops' rob 3 plastic firms in Malabon

MANILA, Philippines - At least 10 heavily armed men wearing police uniforms robbed three plastic firms in Malabon City Saturday night and fled with an undetermined amount of money.

Senior Superintendent Roberto Villanueva, Malabon City police chief, said the suspects, aboard a white Toyota Revo and a silver gray Toyota Corolla, both without license plates, barged into the GIC plastic products compound in Barangay Potrero at around 9:45 p.m.

According to witnesses, three of the robbers were wearing the police general office attire (GOA) with black jackets and at least seven wore the police blue T-shirt athletic uniform. They were armed with handguns and rifles, including grenade launchers, and stayed in the compound for more than two hours.

Northern Police District (NPD) director Chief Superintendent Samuel Pagdilao Jr. said one of the guards overheard one of the suspects as saying “Iba talaga pag tumira and pulis…di ba Sarhento Santillan (It’s how the police work, isn’t it Sgt. Santillan)?”

The STAR called a police station under the NPD’s command yesterday for a certain Sgt. Santillan but the person who answered the telephone said the police officer was not around.

Wilson Mundo, one of the security guards detailed at the compound’s gate, told police that a “policeman” in GOA, armed with an M203 grenade launcher, knocked at their gate claiming they were responding to a telephone call from the compound asking for police assistance.

When the guard opened the gate, a white Revo entered and its armed occupants disarmed the four security guards of their .38 caliber revolvers.

The Corolla, which served as a backup vehicle, was parked outside the gate.

Some of the suspects herded the guards and the employees to a room and tied and blindfolded the victims. The other suspects ransacked the offices of Fil-Am, Zooey and Swasdee plastic companies, and forced open two of the firms’ safety vaults.

 “The offices inside the compound were in total disarray, for the suspects stayed inside for more than two hours and some of them even ate the employees’ food,” Villanueva told The STAR.

At past midnight, the robbers fled with their loot, a bagful of more than P100,000 in coins.

Villanueva said the suspects belonged to the notorious Alvin Flores crime group, which was also responsible for the botched robbery at the Malabon City Square last April 5.

One of the getaway vehicles used in the MC Square robbery attempt was traced to a police officer, who is now the subject of an investigation. One of the gunmen in the failed heist was also seen in the GIC compound robbery.