ALIAGA, Nueva Ecija – Five alleged members of a gun-for-hire group, including two women, from Southern Luzon were caught allegedly transporting a cache of firearms, explosives and suspected metamphetamine hydrochloride in an anti-criminality checkpoint in Barangay Sto. Rosario here at about 7 a.m. Sunday.
The group, led by a certain Ronnie Hernandez, 41, of Barangay Macalamcam B, Rosario, Batangas, reportedly yielded one M16 rifle, four .45 pistols, three hand grenades, several rounds of bullets and about four grams of shabu with an estimated street value of P27,200.
Operatives also seized P49,931 in cash from the suspects, police said.
The other suspects were identified as Alfred Ledesma, 34, of Barangay Del Carmen, Pagbilao, Quezon; Joey Pangilinan, 35, of Barangay San Lucas, Lipa City; one alias “Myra”, 34, of Malvar; and one alias “Liezel”, 37, of San Juan, both in Batangas.
Reports reaching the office of Nueva Ecija police director Col. Richard Caballero showed the suspects were on board a blue sedan (Z2 M269) when flagged down by joint operatives from the provincial police’s 1st and 2nd provincial mobile field company, intelligence and drug enforcement units, and the municipal police station.
The group allegedly operate in areas within Region 4A, NCR, and Region 3 and have previously been involved in several killings in Batangas and Quezon provinces, according to a statement issued by the police.
“This operational accomplishment is the result of a wide-range of intelligence gathering that enable us to stop the possible lawless acts of this gun-for-hire group against the vulnerable populace in our province,” Caballero said.
This stepped-up drive, he said, is in response to directives of Central Luzon police director Brig. Gen. Jose Hidalgo, Jr. to “be persistent in ensuring peace and order in the region.”
Criminal charges for violations of RA 10591 (Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunitions), RA 9516 (Illegal Possession of Explosives) and RA 9165 (Possession of Illegal Drugs) are now being prepared against the arrested suspects.
