MANILA, Philippines—Policemen who engaged two groups of suspected car thieves in Metro Manila on Wednesday were members of special teams organized from the station and district levels that were tasked to hunt down organized crime groups, according to the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO).
In a phone interview, Senior Superintendent Dionardo Carlos, the NCRPO spokesman, explained that the teams had been working to go after robbers, particularly carjackers targeting residents of Metro Manila.
Wednesday’s encounters, which resulted in the deaths of seven suspected car thieves in Quezon City and Makati, indicated that the teams’ legwork bore fruit, Carlos said.
“Their objectives are to arrest and bring to justice these people,” he said. “They (suspects) are now considered a menace to the public in Metro Manila.”
Each of the police stations across the capital has put together these teams to track down organized crime groups in their jurisdiction, Carlos said.
If police at the station level needed assistance in their operation, they could seek help from the district, or eventually to the regional office as well, he continued.
NCRPO Director Alan Purisima has been closely monitoring the progress of these teams, and their accomplishments were being evaluated every 30 days, according to the spokesman.
“The priority of the teams is to identify the criminal groups and after identification, the police must make them stop their activity by arresting them,” Carlos said. “But these people (referring to Wednesday‘s encounters) fought back, so our personnel had to engage.”
In Quezon City, police officers killed five suspected car thieves who were purportedly members of the Lintag car theft group.
Meanwhile in Makati City, a team from the NCRPO’s regional police intelligence and operations unit shot it out with alleged members of the Onad group. One police officer was killed and another one was hurt in the shootout, while two suspects were neutralized.
Carlos said Police Officer 1 Mudzil Ali Balawag would be posthumously recognized while Chief Inspector Joselito Savares, who is recuperating, will also get recognition.