MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Land Transportation Office (LTO) on Friday admitted the presence of a syndicate inside the LTO main office on East Avenue, Quezon City that sells fake license plates for around P9,000 each.

In a press conference, Senior Superintendent Dennis Siervo, chief of the PNP Highway Patrol Group National Capital Region, said two suspects involved in the selling and production of fake license plates were arrested by their operatives in an entrapment operation on Thursday.

Siervo identified the suspects as Gerardo Perez, 48, an employee of Aleha Drug Testing and Laboratory near the LTO head office, and Francisco Arapoc, 42, an alleged LTO “fixer.”

Police undercover agents purchased three fake license plates -- one for hire plate (issued to public utility vehicles), one congressional “8” plate, and one diplomatic plate -- for P9,000 each from a certain “Revo” and “Jerry,” leading to the subsequent arrest of Perez and Arapoc.

Siervo said the fake license plates are “very similar” to original LTO plates, complete with certificates of registration and official receipts.

But LTO chief Alberto Suansing, in a phone interview, said the three plates were “certified fake” by the LTO Plate Making Section.

He added they are conducting an investigation but have yet to identify the group behind the production and distribution of fake license plates.

“Actually those arrested [by the HPG] are just followers. We cannot really pinpoint as of yet who is behind the manufacture of fake license plates,” Suansing said.

But he said the agency has its own system for verifying the authenticity of license plates but refused to say more for security reasons.

Both Suansing and Siervo advised the public to purchase LTO plates only from accredited personnel of the agency.

“We are asking the public to acquire their license plates only from LTO,” Suansing said. “Don’t hire the services of fixers.”