Police thwart election terror try in Alegria, Santander towns

Police arrested 10 men believed to be out to sow terror among voters in two southern Cebu  towns    on the last weekend before Monday’s elections.

Six of those arrested were believed to be part of a larger group that were allegedly hired by a candidate for councilor in Alegria town in  southwest Cebu.

The rest were caught while  allegedly going house to house coercing residents in barangay Talisay in Santander town into voting  for their favored candidates, including One Cebu’s Santander mayoralty bet Ma. Alona Ator.

Long envelopes with a P1,000 bill in each were confiscated from the armed men, including five sample ballots with  names of national candidates marked out along with  that of Ator.

Alegria and Santander belong to the 2nd congressional district of Rep. Pablo Garcia who is seeking reelection under One Cebu.

“Init gyud ang politika diri,” Insp. Sandy Roble, chief of police of Alegria town said. (Political tension is really high here.)

Those arrested in Alegria were reportedly working for Arnold Cuevas, barangay captain of barangay Ste. Felomina who is  running for  town councilor under the One Cebu party.

The suspects were identified as Michael Ricablanca Gramatica, 23; Jojie Mijares Alforque, 24; Larry Bandolon Paulo, 22; Odelon Salamania Pastor, 26; John Carl Yosores Dacay, 24 and Talper Flores Tupas, 20 all from sitio Barracks, barangay Ermita in Cebu City.

During investigation, the suspects said they were part of at least 19 men who arrived in the town on Wednesday midnight and were divided into three groups and sent to the mountain barangays the next day, according to SP04 Rutilo Cardona, operations office of the Alegria Municipal Police Station.

GARCIA DENIES

One Cebu  secretary-general and gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Pablo John Garcia, denied that their candidates have hired goons for the elections.

“Do you think that with the whole might of the administration and Gen. (Marcelo) Garbo arrayed against us, any of our local candidates would be crazy to hire goons? This is clearly to justify the heavy presence of RMG (Regional Mobile Group) personnel in the towns at the disposal of the administration?” he said in a text message to Cebu Daily News.

“And it is easy to manufacture evidence of vote-buying against your opponent, especially when the police is on your side,” he added.

Garbo is non-partisan

PNP Director-General Allan Purisima who was in Cebu yesterday quickly defended Garbo, chief of the Central Visayas police, and said that allegations that he is partisan are not true.

“Hindi po iyon totoo,” he told reporters in a news conference. (That’s not true.) “The PNP is treating everybody fairly. They are just mandated by their duties.”

PO2 Bismarck Babiera, case officer of the Alegria incident, said police confiscated a .357 “paltik” revolver with three bullets from  Odelon Salamania Pastor, while three packs of suspected shabu were seized from  Larry Bandolon Paulo. Pastor will be charged with illegal possession of firearms and ammunition and for violating the election gun ban while Paulo will be charged with violation of the  Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act.

Alegria police chief Roble  said the four other suspects will also be facing charges, but he could not specify what case will be filed against them.

SP04 Cardona said the suspects admitted that there were 19 of them who were recruited by barangay captain Cuevas and were given P2,000 each and will be given another P2,000 after the elections.

“Ilang alegasyon nga gi-recruit sila kay pabantayon sa election”, Cardona said.

The suspects were immediately transferred to the police detention center in Talisay City on orders of Senior Supt. Patrocinio Commendador, the provincial police chief.

According to investigators, the suspects were divided into two groups Thursday night with one assigned to sitio Libo while the other was in barangay Lepanto proper.

At 10 a.m. Friday, they went to a pool hall owned by barangay councilman Cesar Lecera. Alarmed with the presence of the six men because they were new to the area and one of them reportedly brandished a gun, the councilman called the police. The suspects did not resist arrest.

‘Aggressive campaigning’

In Santander town, residents of barangay Talisay sought the help of the police after four armed men were reportedly going from one house to another to “campaign” for a group of candidates.

“They  operate at night and knock on  doors. Once  inside the house,  they place their guns on the table. That’s why people were terrified. That’s their modus operandi,”   Insp. Abel Laborte, chief of police of Santander town, said.

Those arrested were identified as  Arnel Meliosa Orsadas, 20; Arnel Estoque, 21, Recan Baliente, 22, and Glenn Merlo, 22. All were reportedly from Siaton, Negros Oriental.

A .45 caliber pistol with five bullets  was seized from Arnel Meliosa Orsadas while a grenade was confiscated from Arnel Estoque.

Insp. Laborte said Orsadas attempted to run and even draw his pistol, but he was overpowered by the police.  He added that Estoque was a former member of the  Citizen’s Armed Forces Geographical Unit (Cafgu) but was taken out of the rolls after he was charged with  frustrated murder last year.

Seized from Recan Baliente and Glenn Merlo were long envelopes containing a P1,000 bill each and five sample ballots.  “We believe this is fake money kay paghawid pa lang daan maklaro na sa watermark,” Laborte told Cebu Daily News.

Ten small packs of suspected shabu were also seized from Baliente. Laborte said the sample ballots had the names of senatorial candidates shaded, included that of Ma. Alona Ator, who is running for mayor under the One Cebu party.

Police said they earlier received information that armed persons arrived in Santander on board an L300 van around 6 p.m last Sunday, May 5. The suspects reportedly told investigators that each of them was paid P200 daily.  Laborte said the other members of the the armed group fled on learning of the arrest of their four colleagues. /Jhunnex Napallacan, Joy Cherry Quito, Carmel Loise Matus, and Chito Aragon