Three men were killed in what police said was a shootout after they allegedly robbed a payment center late Friday in Quezon City.
The still unidentified suspects died on the spot after the encounter on Katipunan Avenue Extension in Barangay Pansol, near a gate of the University of the Philippines campus.
They were recognized by PJ Gumapal, 31, an employee of the Keno and Bayad Center outlet in the area, as the same men who robbed the shop and held him at gunpoint.
PO3 Erickson Isidro, the officer on the case, said Gumapal was about to close the shop around 11:30 p.m. when the three armed men entered and grabbed two boxes containing P5,200 in cash from him.
The trio then ran toward Katipunan as the employee shouted for help.
Members of the Quezon City Police District’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit led by Insp. Danilo Malab were patrolling the area when they heard Gumapal’s pleas for help, Isidro said.
Malab’s team went around the area to check on possible escape routes, until they saw the three men walking in a hurry.
Isidro said the trio opened fire at the policemen, who were in a patrol car, forcing the latter to fire back.
The stolen cash and as well as three .38-caliber revolvers were recovered from the slain suspects, he said. Julie M. Aurelio