Three suspects nabbed in Danao City gun raid

A third buy-bust operation in two days led to the arrest of a woman and two men allegedly involved in the illegal manufacturing of firearms in Danao City, northern Cebu.

Merlita Perez, 40, was arrested Friday morning by operatives of the intelligence division of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7) after she allegedly sold a 38. caliber revolver to a poseur-buyer in barangay Kahumayan, Danao.

Police also arrested Santos Lomin, 31, and Norman Alerta, 43, who were caught making guns in a shanty near the area where the buy-bust operation took place.

Police said there were other people in the shanty, including Perez’s husband Roy, but they managed to flee.

Seized from the suspects  were: two .45 caliber pistols; two .38 caliber revolvers; 27 barrels of .45 caliber pistols; 23 barrels of .38 caliber revolvers; and 11 barrels of .22 caliber revolvers.

The seized items had an estimated value of P100,000, Chief Insp. George Ylanan, chief of the Regional Special Operation Group in Central Visayas (RSOG-7), said.

Last Thursday, police  arrested eight persons and seized several firearms, gun parts and equipment worth at least P1 million in two separate buy-bust operations in sitio Canbiohan, barangay Poblacion, Danao.

The two operations were conducted by operatives of the Provincial Intelligence Branch (PIB) of the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO).

Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo Jr., director of PRO-7, said the series of operations are part of the police campaign against illegal manufacturers of firearms.

Because of the rampant illegal gun-making activities in Danao, Garbo said they are now studying the possibility of legalizing the manufacturing of firearms in the city.

Gun makers in Danao had formed  a cooperative known as the Workers League of Danao Multi-Purpose Cooperative (World-MPC) which manufactured .38 and .45 caliber pistols.

The cooperative officials, however, failed to renew the license that prompted the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to raid the shop in 2011 2011 where 16 persons were arrested.

Several equipment worth P3 million were seized in the raid.

Garbo said that legalizing the manufacturing of guns in Danao was one of his plans when he assumed the post as PRO-7 director./CORRESPONDENTS CHITO O. ARAGON AND GABRIEL C. BONJOC