‘Car theft king,’ 4 gang men fall

After eluding the police for years, a notorious gang of car thieves led by Mac Lester Reyes (second from right, left photo) is captured in a series of operations conducted by the Quezon City police in Caloocan, Malabon, Bulacan and Quezon province.

Mac Lester Reyes

MANILA, Philippines–The elusive leader of the “No. 1 car theft group in the country” has been arrested along with four cohorts in a three-day operation that capped yearlong efforts by the Quezon City police to neutralize the gang.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Quezon City Police District director Chief Supt. Richard Albano announced the arrest of 37-year-old “car theft king” Mac Lester Reyes, his live-in partner and four gang members. Seized from them were 10 stolen vehicles, several sets of license plates, a grenade and several sachets of methamphetamine hydrochloride, or “shabu.” All but one member of the group tested positive for drugs.

According to Senior Insp. Rolando Lorenzo Jr., QCPD-Anti-Carnapping (Ancar) Unit chief, Reyes’ group had been operating for the past 10 years in Metro Manila and nearby provinces. It targeted mostly parked, unattended vehicles that were dismantled and sold for parts in areas as far as the Visayas and Mindanao.

Lorenzo said that his unit had been going after the gang since last year but it was only two months ago that they stepped up their tracking and surveillance operations.

“We had a hard time tracking down [Reyes]. He was constantly on the move,” he told reporters.

Albano, who described the group as the country’s No. 1 car theft syndicate, said its neutralization was the result of several operations spearheaded by the QCPD-Ancar unit from Aug. 13 to 15 in Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan and Quezon.

These were prompted by information the police received on Aug. 13 that two gang members—later identified as auto technician Armando de la Cruz, 26, and househelper Alvin Ganac, 19—were on their way to a surplus store on Cardiz Street in Banawe, Quezon City, on board a stolen Toyota Prado.

Recovered from the group were 10 vehicles which had been reported stolen and several sachets of “shabu.” LYN RILLON

The vehicle’s license plate, XRP 290, was found to be registered to an Isuzu D-Max that was reported stolen while parked at GSIS Village in Project 8, Quezon City, on June 18.

From the surplus store, the police followed the suspects to Compound No. 9 on Bustamante Street in Tenejeros, Malabon City, where they were arrested around 11 p.m. that same day. De la Cruz yielded a fragmentation grenade and a plastic sachet of suspected shabu. Aside from the Prado, the police also recovered inside the compound a Toyota Hi-Ace Grandia (CTU 830), another stolen vehicle.

After being questioned by the police, Ganac identified Reyes as the leader of their group and told them that he was hiding in a condominium on Kabigting Street in Barangay 127, Caloocan City.

Reyes, who was arrested based on warrants issued by a Malolos, Bulacan, court on charges of car theft and illegal possession of explosives, initially resisted when the police came around midnight. He locked himself and his live-in partner Richell Sibug, 30, inside his house and even fired a gun although he was eventually overpowered by the arresting team.

When frisked, police seized from the gang leader a belt bag with two plastic sachets believed to contain shabu. Also recovered were two stolen vehicles—a Toyota Hi-Ace (TQA 117) and a Nissan Patrol (AJG 111)—several picklocks and other tools.

At around 2 a.m. on Aug. 14, the Ancar team received information that two other suspected stolen vehicles were hidden at a resort in Barangay Tuhian, Catanauan, Quezon province, which also served as Reyes’ hideout.

The police went to the area and found a Toyota Land Cruiser (AEU 434) and another Toyota Prado (XBV 858), both stolen in Barangay Lourdes, Quezon City, on July 16 and May 25, respectively.

Also on Aug. 14, the operatives were told that two men identified only as Jury and Mac-mac were about to deliver more stolen vehicles to the Malabon compound where De la Cruz and Ganac had been arrested.

A stakeout in the area was conducted the next day, leading to the arrest of Pablito Gumasing, 34, and Macario San Diego, 23, another auto technician. Recovered from them were a white Toyota Hi-ace van (WOC 164) and a blue Isuzu Sportivo (TLQ 652), which were stolen on July 16 in Manila and on July 31 in Caloocan, respectively.

Follow-up operations led to the recovery of two other stolen vehicles in Marilao, Bulacan: A Subaru (BDR 707) and a Hyundai Accent (NQT 989), both taken in Quezon City in July.

Albano expressed hope that with the capture of the gang members, Quezon City would soon become a car theft-free zone.