MANILA, Philippines — A suspected robber was shot dead early Sunday in Binondo, Manila, after he allegedly shot it out with policemen who had found the bulge at his waist suspicious.
The still unidentified man had allegedly pulled the trigger first, after patrolling police called his attention upon noticing his “suspicious behavior” and a bulge at the waist, the Manila Police District homicide chief, Insp. Armando Macaraeg, told reporters.
The Manila Police District Station 11 personnel, Police Officer 3 Erwin Gaddi, PO2 Ruelester Santos and PO2 Joel Morales were patrolling along Jones Bridge at around 1:30 a.m., when they spotted the man walking near the corner of Quintin Paredes and Escolta streets.
The police were patrolling the area based on reports from village officials complaining of a spate of holdup-robberies in the vicinity, the MPD PS 11 commander, Supt. Ferdinand Quirante, said.
When the three policemen approached the man, he allegedly pulled out the “bulge,” which turned out to be a .38-caliber snub-nosed gun, and started firing. The police men fired back, killing the man on the spot.
“My men acted on duty to defend themselves,” Quirante insisted. He said the three were willing to submit to an investigation being conducted by the MPD-Homicide section.
The case investigator, SPO2 Virgo Villareal of MPD-Homicide section, described the slain robbery suspect as being in his early 30s, distinguished by the tattoo reading “Manny” on his upper right arm.
In the past month alone, the MPD-Homicide section has recorded three gun battles between police and suspected robbers.
On May 18 at 3:30 a.m., the MPD-Station 6 gave chase to three men riding a motorcycle, after the latter had tried to rob a policeman on Lambingan Bridge in Sta. Ana district. The police killed two of the suspected robbers in an ensuing gun battle.
Before dawn on May 15, the MPD-Station 10 Anti-Crime Unit engaged in a shootout, and killed, two armed men at the corner of Mendoza St. and Quirino Avenue in Pandacan district, acting on a citizen complaint suspecting the men to be robbers.
On May 7, MPD-Station 2 operatives tailed two robbers who boarded a jeepney immediately after they held up a woman at the Divisoria shopping district. The robbers disembarked at the Jose Abad Santos Avenue in Tondo, where they allegedly started shooting at their pursuers. The police fired back and killed the robbers instantly with multiple gunshot wounds. The slain men were allegedly members of a group called Commando Gang.