Rob suspect charged for 7-11 guard’s slay same man tagged in American’s death in 7-11 heist

MANILA, Philippines - Criminal charges were filed yesterday against an alleged member of the Ozamis robbery gang for the death of a security guard in a heist at a 7-11 convenience store branch along Quezon Avenue, officials said yesterday.

Superintendent Marcelino Pedrozo Jr., commander of the QCPD-Station 10, said Wilfredo Panongalinga Jr. was identified as the one who allegedly shot security guard Reynaldo Guiatao during the Nov. 25 robbery.

He was also identified by self-confessed gang member Ramil Espera as the one who shot dead American Robert Armstrong during a robbery of another 7-11 store in Malate, Manila in September.

According to Pedrozo, Panongalinga is facing a criminal complaint for robbery with homicide with the Quezon City prosecutor’s office.

Inspector Elmer Monsalve, head of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) homicide investigation section, said Panongalinga is considered to be among the “remnants” of the Ozamis gang, whose reported leader, Ricky Cadavero, was arrested in October.

Monsalve said investigators identified Panongalinga by comparing surveillance footage of the 7-11 Quezon Avenue heist and another 7-11 branch in Tondo that was robbed an hour later. The robbers failed to get anything from the Quezon Avenue store and managed to take only P2,580 from the Tondo branch.

Investigators said Panongalinga allegedly robbed two LBC Express branches in Pamplona 2, Las Piñas City on Nov. 16. The first branch lost P32,000 while the second lost P16,000.

Pedrozo said investigators noted that the footage taken at the 7-11 store in Tondo showed a man who had a striking resemblance to a suspect in the Las Piñas robberies, said to be Panongalinga.

National Capital Region Police Office head Director Leonardo Espina has ordered a manhunt for Panongalinga, who remains at large.

Bloody trail

Panongalinga is the alias “Kulot,” whose name was reported by The STAR after he was identified by Espera, who also named him as among the four men behind another hit by the gang on a hardware store in Cavite in August.

Panongalinga was also tagged by Espera in another robbery targeting an engineer in Las Piñas, also in August, in which they supposedly took off with P300,000 worth of jewelry.

Based on a document obtained by The STAR, Panongalinga was among the 12 inmates who escaped from the Ozamis City Jail in Misamis Occidental on July 29, 2010. He had reportedly been convicted for illegal possession of firearms and had a pending murder case against him.

Cadavero; his partner, Wesley Adelan; and Espera were arrested in separate operations in October. Their arrest came after policemen nabbed five alleged members of the gang at a safehouse in Cubao.

Cadavero had long been convicted for a robbery at a branch of Land Bank of the Philippines along West Avenue.