5 suspected gunrunners killed, cop wounded

Five alleged members of a gunrunning syndicate were killed by Quezon City Police District (QCPD) operatives on Tuesday evening after a botched entrapment operation at Barangay Fairview, the police said.

QCPD director, Chief Supt. Joselito Esquivel Jr., identified one of the suspects as Michael Desuyo, the suspected group leader.

A police report said the five were killed at the corner of Dahlia and Iris Streets after they reportedly shot it out with policemen after sensing that their buyer, PO1 Ronald Pornea, was an undercover officer.

Pornea was hit on the left shoulder during the firefight. He was taken to FEU Medical Center, the report added.

Police get tip

QCPD District Special Operations Unit (DSOU) operatives conducted the entrapment operation after receiving information about the syndicate’s involvement in the illegal sale of firearms.

Police said they seized 15 .38-caliber revolvers, two .45-caliber pistols and several rounds of ammunition from the suspects.

Supt. Gil Torralba, DSOU chief, told the Inquirer that he was confident the operation had crippled the gunrunning group. The five suspects killed on Monday, he said, were the remaining members of the group after a QCPD operation in October 2018 left three of their cohorts dead.

Torralba said the syndicate was involved in illegal drug activities as well. Director Guillermo Eleazar, National Capital Region Police Office chief, added that it was possible the men also doubled as hired assassins.