Police find arms cache in lawyer’s Taytay home

CIDG Director Samuel D. Pagdilao Jr.

A lawyer long wanted for a string of criminal cases, including several estafa complaints, was arrested over the weekend by agents of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) for allegedly keeping a cachet of unlicensed firearms.

CIDG chief Director Samuel Pagdilao Jr. said Patrick Caronan was arrested in a raid of his house at 40 Valley View Ave., Valley View Royale Subdivision, Taytay, Rizal, at about 11 p.m. on Saturday.

Superintendent Danilo Macerin, deputy chief of the CIDG’s National Capital Region office, said Caronan had been recently arrested in another house in nearby Cainta town in connection with two estafa cases.

“But he was able to get out of jail by posting bail. We then conducted surveillance after we got reports that he and his security escorts were carrying loose firearms,” Macerin told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Macerin said the CIDG also received information that Caronan was involved in the anomalous sale of a P7-million property in Pasay City and had been ordered arrested by several courts for violation of the antibouncing checks law.

“We will continue doing a background check on (Caronan) to see if he had other arrest warrants,” he added.

The CIDG said it was also looking into reports that Caronan had used the identity of his younger brother to enter law school, pass the bar and practice as a lawyer.

Pagdilao said CIDG agents seized a Colt assault rifle, a .45-cal. pistol, a Bentley 12-gauge shotgun, a Daewoo 9 mm pistol, an Armscor .38-cal. revolver, a fragmentation grenade and assorted ammunition during the raid.

The CIDG chief said the raiding team also arrested four other men who were with Caronan in the house, among them a Victor S. Belardo, who had an arrest order from a Tagaytay City Regional Trial Court for murder.

The Community Investigative Support (CIS) provided assistance to the CIDG’s campaign against unlicensed firearms.

“As the CIDG fulfills its task to ensure peaceful elections next year, we welcome the efforts of the CIS in helping us meet this mandate,” said Pagdilao in a statement.

Pagdilao, meanwhile, said CIDG operatives in Region XII swooped down on the house of one Edwin Aficionado in Paradise Subdivision, Barangay Heights, General Santos City, also on Saturday and confiscated a .45-cal. pistol, a Squibman .22-cal. rifle, and a Smith and Wesson .38-cal. revolver.

“Initial investigation showed the suspect had links to a gun-for-hire group operating in the region,” the CIDG chief said.