Suspect in Quiapo road rage shooting nabbed in Masbate

The suspect in the Quiapo road rage incident was arrested in Masbate before noon on Friday by the Army’s Intelligence Security Group with combined police and Army personnel.

Armed Forces public affairs chief Colonel Edgard Arevalo said Vhon Tanto was arrested in Barangay (village) Poblacion, Milagros town around 11:45 a.m

He said Tanto is being held at the 9th Infantry Battalion while waiting for the police authorities who will bring him to Manila.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said in a separate briefing that Tanto did not resist authorities when he was arrested.

Tanto, who was earlier reported as an Army reservist, was caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage shooting cyclist Mark Vincent Geralde after a fistfight on P. Casal Street last Monday night. Witnesses have identified him as the suspect in the incident.

READ: Driver shoots biker dead after Manila fistfight

The Army had earlier said it will help authorities in locating Tanto, who was previously assigned with 1301st Community Defense Center, National Capital Regional Community Defense Group of the Army Reserve Command in Caloocan City.

Local officials have offered up to P200,000 bounty for Tanto’s arrest.
Arevalo said that Tanto is on inactive status as reservist since January 2015 and he will be delisted from the roster.

“Since he was identified to be a reservist after that fatal road rage, he has been dragging not only the AFP but also the good name and reputation of the Reservist Force in the Army, Air Force, and the Navy,” Arevalo said.

“This, the AFP cannot and will not tolerate. It will, as it did, exert all efforts and utilize its available resources to help arrest this individual labeled as ‘very dangerous,'” he added. RAM/rga

READ: Car of suspect in Quiapo road rage shooting found in N. Vizcaya