Not even government officials are exempted from the campaign against illegal firearms.
This was the reminder of Quezon City Police District (QCPD) head Chief Supt. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, as he presented to the media yesterday a barangay kagawad (village councilor) who was caught with an illegal firearm on Friday night.
The QCPD Special Operations Unit arrested Barangay Old Capitol Site kagawad Roberto Lim, 56, during a drinking spree at an eatery on Dahlia Street in the barangay.
The arrest was triggered by a telephone call from a concerned citizen who expressed concern about Lim, who had tucked his caliber .45 Armscor conspicuously under his waistband.
When the DSOU arrived to confirm the report, Lim could only produce an expired firearms license, prompting the arrest and the confiscation of the gun. Lim faced charges of illegal possession of firearms, absence of a permit to carry firearms outside of residence.
“This is part of the intensified anti-criminality operations of QCPD to eliminate violence,” Eleazar said, underscoring that government officials are not exempted in the campaign.
Meanwhile, also on Friday night, a barangay tanod (watchman) in Barangay Bagbag, Novaliches, Quezon city, was also arrested for indiscriminate firing.
The suspect, Uldarico de Luna, 60, was apparently drunk when he fired his Colt .45 caliber pistol, a report from the Novaliches police station showed.
When the police responded, de Luna was not able to present any documentation for the handgun.
De Luna is now facing complaints of illegal discharge of firearms and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. CDG