DEXTER Balane, a former soldier, visits St. Joseph Cathedral in Tagbilaran City, Bohol province, with his father, Diosario, and mother, Luz (not shown in photo), hoping to put an end to what the Balane family said is the continued wrongful accusation against Dexter. LEO UTDOHAN
Twice, his name was dragged in reports about daring store robberies in Cagayan de Oro City and Quezon City, and twice, the criminal complaints filed against him were dismissed by prosecutors because not even his shadow was in the crime scenes.
On reports about the third robbery, a hit on a money remittance outlet in Pagadian City, former Army Capt. Dexter Ranario Balane was piqued. It even drew national attention when President Aquino mentioned his arrest on television during his sixth and last State of the Nation Address (Sona) before legislators in July.
The President said: “Nitong nakaraang linggo lang, nahuli na si Dexter Balane, na lider ng robbery and holdup group na kasabwat ng Martilyo Gang (Just last week, Dexter Balane, leader of the robbery and holdup group that worked in cahoots with Martilyo Gang, has been arrested).”
In the same breath, he recognized the police for bagging top communist leaders Benito and Wilma Tiamzon; retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan Jr., or “The Butcher” to human rights groups, who is being tried for the 2006 disappearance of students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño; and Zulkifli Abdhir, alias “Marwan,” a Malaysian bomb maker who was killed during the encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao province, that left 44 elite police officers dead.
More than a month later, Balane, 36, is breaking his silence. “Napuno na ko. Sobra na kayo (I have had enough. This is too much),” he told the Inquirer. “I am really mad because I am falsely accused and I have been disgraced in front of the whole country.”
Temporary liberty
Balane said the allegations against him had tainted his name and ruined his life. He is out on bail after being linked to the latest crime—the robbery of an ML Lhuillier money remittance outlet at Gaisano Mall in Pagadian City.
A former Army captain, Balane was one of the targets of the government’s Oplan Lambat-Sibat for allegedly leading a robbery and holdup group operating in Mindanao and Metro Manila, in cahoots with the Martilyo Gang.
Known for using hammers, wrenches and crowbars to smash glass display cases and take away jewelry and other valuables, the Balane Group and the Martilyo Gang were allegedly behind the 2013 robbery in SM Megamall and SM North Edsa.
Balane strongly denied his involvement in the robberies.
“I wasn’t there (crime scene) even if they (police probers) said I was on CCTV when the robberies happened. I am a security officer of a big company and I know that when you are caught on the footage, you can’t make excuses.”
He maintained he was never in hiding and had never been convicted of any crime.
His mother, Luz, said it was painful for her to see her son being wrongly accused. “I am seeking justice for my son because they (police) have ruined his life. The accusation also ruined my family as well,” she added.
Bohol native
Balane, the eldest of four children, was born in Alburquerque town in Bohol province where he completed his elementary education. He moved to Saint John the Baptist Academy in Garcia-Hernandez town where he finished high school. He pursued a degree of Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration at University of Bohol in Tagbilaran City.
As an officer of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) in college, he became attracted to military service. He enlisted and eventually became a soldier in 2003, rising to become a captain.
Balane specialized in conventional and guerrilla warfare operations, counterterrorism, relief and rescue, and both waterborne and air-to-ground missions.
On July 31, 2013, he resigned for health reasons. He was then a battalion executive officer.
“I was not dismissed,” stressed Balane. He showed a certification dated Sept. 2, 2013, and issued by Maj. Roberto de la Cruz, stating he was given an honorable discharge from the Philippine Army and was never charged with any offense.
Reprimand
He later worked for a telecommunications company as an inspector. His problem started while he was still in the military service. He had reprimanded an aide who was involved in illegal activities and who later linked him to criminal activities in Mindanao, he said.
On April 14, 2011, Balane and seven others were charged in connection with the robbery at Aya Commercial, a supermarket store in Cagayan de Oro City. The case was dismissed after Balane showed his daily operational report and his unit’s semiannual report to prove that he was at his command post in Zamboanga del Sur province at that time.
On Dec. 15, 2014, his name was dragged in the SM North Edsa robbery where at least seven men used hammers and crowbars to destroy the display cases and remove the jewelry.
“How could I be in Manila when I was in Bohol attending our family reunion?”
Balane asked.
Of the seven suspects, only Balane appeared during the preliminary investigation. Again, the case was dismissed for lack of evidence.
Travel order
PRESIDENT Aquino delivers his last State of the Nation Address (Sona) before Congress on July 27. One of the achievements that the President bragged about in his final Sona was the arrest of Dexter Balane who was tagged one of the cohorts of the so-called Martilyo Gang responsible for a spate of robberies in Metro Manila and other urban areas.
GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
To prove that he had nothing to do with the robbery in Pagadian, Balane showed a travel order dated Feb. 17 and signed by his superior officer.
It directed him “to proceed to Bacolod (City in Negros Occidental province) on February 23 to 27 to attend court hearings on cases filed against the apprehended cable thieves and conduct facility inspection.”
On Feb. 21, he was in Bohol to attend the 60th birthday celebration of his mother. The next day, he went back to Iloilo province through Tabuelan town in Cebu province. When the robbery was committed on Feb. 22, around 1 p.m., he was still traveling in a fastcraft headed for Cebu City, he said.
Balane was arrested on July 20 in his house in Pavia, Iloilo, by members of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Western Visayas, the municipal police and the Army’s 15th Intelligence Service Unit based in Iloilo. The warrant was issued by Judge Dennis Vicoy of Regional Trial Court 9 Branch 20 in
Pagadian.
Out on bail, Balane urged the President to verify the police claims before issuing any statement. “President Aquino should have double-checked the information before delivering his Sona because it appeared he was not telling the truth,” he said.
Palace reaction
Reached for comment in Manila, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma defended the President’s mention of Balane in his Sona, saying the Chief Executive had no intention to defame anybody.
Mr. Aquino’s statements should be read in context, Coloma said. “The Sona is an occasion for learning for Filipinos about what’s happening in our country. The President used concrete examples of certain points… . I don’t think there was any motive or intention to defame or malign a person for no valid reason,” he said.
If Balane feels that he has a legitimate grievance, there are recourses he could take under our laws, he added. With a report from Leila B. Salaverria in Manila