The chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday ordered the creation of a special team of investigators to help the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) look into the spate of alleged child abductions in Metro Manila.
Director General Alan Purisima issued the order after Malacañang voiced its concern over the disappearance of several minors in the metropolis, including another who was reportedly snatched away in Quezon City Sunday afternoon.
In the latest case, a three-year-old boy reportedly went missing from his Quezon City residence after he was allegedly picked up by a couple.
John Gabriel Calimag went missing around 5 p.m. Sunday, according to reports reaching the Kamuning station of the Quezon City Police District.
The mother, Grace Calimag, told authorities that her son may have wandered out of their house on NIA Road, a slum area in Barangay Pinyahan, while she was taking a nap. The boy was last seen wearing a yellow sando and maroon shorts.
According to her, a 12-year-old street child recalled seeing the toddler crying near the Kamuning station of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) before he was picked up by an elderly-looking Caucasian man and his Filipino female partner.
The street child claimed seeing the couple taking the young Calimag with them on a bus plying Edsa and bound for Baclaran.
Purisima said he had instructed Chief Supt. Francisco Uyami, director of the the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), to form a team that will look into the disappearance of at least four children.
“These investigators will be assisting the NCRPO in the conduct of the investigation and the possible arrest of the perpetrators, if there are any,” the PNP chief said.
Last week, Purisima downplayed rumors that members of a syndicate were going around the metropolis to abduct children for their organs.
This was after the body of a four-year-old boy was found dismembered and decomposing in a ravine in Pililia, Rizal province, more than two weeks after he was reported missing. The local police initially suspected that the boy accidentally fell to his death, but had the body examined for signs of foul play.
Purisima maintained that there was no evidence to show that the cases of the missing minors were all related and that the rumors about an alleged organ-harvesting syndicate were merely fanned by text messages.
Also, NCRPO director Chief Supt. Leonardo Espina said that of the 38 cases of missing persons recorded by his office last year, 36 had been solved. “The missing children were returned to their parents. Some of them just fled their homes while others strayed far while playing,” he said.