Secret marshals kill jeepney rob suspect

MANILA, Philippines - One of three suspected robbers was killed by two secret marshals of the Manila Police District in an encounter in Sta. Cruz, Manila before dawn yesterday.  

The slain suspect remains unidentified as of press time. He was described as between 30 and 40 years old, sporting a beard and a moustache and wearing a black jacket and a pair of blue short pants. He had different tattoos on his body and a “BCJ” tattoo on the right thigh, which could mean that he was a member of the brotherhood of jail inmates known as “Batang City Jail,” police said. A .38 caliber revolver with five bullets was recovered from his possession.

According to Police Officer 3 Rommel del Rosario, the slain suspect and his male companion robbed a woman while onboard a jeepney (NWV-727) along Tayuman street at around 1:30 a.m. The suspects were not aware that two police secret marshals, PO3 Froilan Lopez and PO2 Merian Tadini, were in the same vehicle.

Seeing the suspects armed with guns, Lopez pulled out his service firearm and shot one of the suspects. The other suspect managed to jump out of the vehicle and boarded a motorcycle driven by another cohort, who has been trailing the jeepney. The suspect left his gun, which turned out to be only a replica.

The wounded suspect was rushed by the police to the Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center but died while undergoing treatment for two gunshot wounds in the body.

The victim, April Novelas, and jeepney driver Conrado Santiago executed their sworn statements to the police on the shooting. Lopez and Tadini surrendered their service firearms for ballistic tests.

Sta. Cruz police station chief Superintendent James Afalla has activated the police secret marshals in response to a series of robberies involving jeepney passengers, especially at night.

“The secret marshals are trained to engage criminals in close encounters and are proven effective to secure the students with the opening of classes,” Afalla said.

Secret marshals are armed plainclothes policemen who ride on buses and passenger jeepneys to thwart any criminal activities, Afalla added.