Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief General Guillermo Eleazar
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA
MANILA, Philippines — Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, chief of the Philippine National Police, ordered on Monday a crackdown on online sellers of loose firearms.
Eleazar tasked the PNP anticybercrime group and police intelligence to look into the alleged online sale of hot guns following last week’s joint military and police raid at a Bulacan warehouse where thousands of disassembled high-powered firearm parts and ammunition were found.
The PNP chief said the disassembled .50-caliber and M-16 rifle guns were police and military-issued, which were improperly disposed of and reassembled for sale to private armed groups, mostly through online platforms.
“In our aggressive campaign against loose firearms as part of the early security preparations for the 2022 elections, we are not discounting the possibility that some gun-running syndicates are using the online platforms for their illegal activities,” Eleazar said.