Gen. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), ordered on Monday, Sept. 13, the Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) to step up the campaign against online gun-running activities.
This, after initial investigation on the operations in Bulacan and Quezon City that led to the confiscation of thousands of disassembled parts of firearms disclosed that some of the suspects sold loose guns via online.
“In our aggressive campaign against loose firearms as part of the early security preparations for the 2022 elections, we are not discounting the possibility that some gun-running syndicates are using the online platforms for their illegal activities,” said Eleazar.
The disassembled gun parts, reportedly from police and military-issued firearms that were not properly disposed, were being re-assembled into new firearms.
Most of the weapon parts confiscated in the warehouse in Bulacan were caliber .50 and M16 rifles.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) earlier ensured that the matter be investigated to determine the source of the firearms.
“Guns are the common instrument in committing crimes that is why we have to step our preemptive campaign through aggressive operations against those who sell them illegally, especially that were heading towards elections when these loose guns could be used to sabotage the elections and sow violence," said Eleazar.