Suspect in series of robberies falls

TAGBILARAN  CITY, Philippines – Police intelligence operatives arrested a suspect responsible for alleged string of robberies, including the attempted rape of an 18-year-old girl, City Police Chief Inspector George Vale said in a conference yesterday.

Vale presented and identified a certain Lemuel Maestrado Cahig, 26, single, a resident of Barangay Canmanico, Valencia town, about 45 kilometers from here, through his driver's license.

The suspect may be facing six counts of robberies and a case of attempted rape of a student of one of the universities here, Vale said.

Police on patrol flagged down a motorcycle-riding suspect who was holding a netbook along corner of B. Inting Street and M. Torralba Street "but the driver panicked and swerved his motorcycle into a pathway and almost falling side down and resulted in viewing a handle of handgun from his right waistline."

This prompted the police to arrest the suspect.

Seized from the suspect were one firearm, a .38 cal. revolver fully loaded with six rounds of ammunition without serial number license and drug paraphernalia, such as plastic tube with five pieces of transparent cellophane containing suspected "shabu" granules, police said.

Alco seized was his backpack bag containing a piece of folded aluminum foil; improvised panel; improvised tube; one piece Blade; a cellular phone; digital weighing scale; several ID cards and ATM card; a unit of Samsung laptop; and a motorcycle without license plate number.

The inventory following the confiscation of the items was witnessed by Zacarias Castro, representative of the Department of Justice; Anthony Aniscal of the media; and Barangay Kagawads Roy Navea and Jordan Borces of Barangay Poblacion 2 of this city.

Aside from Vale, other police officers who arrested the suspect were Pi Gereon Item, Senior Police Officer Patrick Kibir, Police Officer 2 Ignacio Inojales, Police Officer 1 Jayson Jamoner and Police Officer 1 Maris Aldrin Gabuya.

While formal charges are being readied against him, the suspect is put behind bars at the city police station.  -JMD