Bataan police orders crackdown on jueteng

Balanga City, Bataan — Police authorities here have ordered a crackdown of all forms of illegal gambling in the province, particularly jueteng, in response to the Department of Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) directives and the policy of newly elected Gov. Enrique Garcia Jr. of eradicating vices.

Superintendent Elmer Macapagal, Bataan police director, yesterday reiterated his directive to 12 police chiefs and two mobile groups directors to curb jueteng when illegal gambling operations resurfaced in some areas, one even adjacent to the hometown of the alleged Central Luzon gambling lord.

Macapagal said that when he took over the provincial police command last July 1, the first order he made was to dismantle the synchronized and open illegal numbers game.

Macapagal reported that out of the 11 police operations conducted when he assumed the local command, 30 bet collectors were arrested and some P16,774 worth of bets of various denominations were confiscated.

The newly-installed police director stressed that prior to the DILG directives, he has already mapped out plans to stop the illegal numbers game which deprive residents of enjoying their hard-earned income.