CEBU CITY — Three persons were arrested when agents of the National Bureau of Investigation-Central Visayas (NB-7) raided an illegal liquefy petroleum gas (LPG) refilling plant in Moalboal town, southern Cebu.
Arrested were Danilo Reyes Cebuan Jr., Alamid Sanchez Toledo and Ramil Ayong Quillano.
The NBI 7 said that the three men are workers of Jane Dela Cerna Reales, who was the subject of a search warrant issued by Regional Trial Court Judge Merlo Bagang of Branch 14 in Cebu City.
Reales was not around when NBI 7 agents served the warrant last Tuesday, Dec. 7.
The NBI 7 said it received a report that Reales was operating an LPG refilling plant near a residential area in the town.
The NBI 7 later learned that Reales was not issued with a Standard Compliance Certificate by the Department of Energy thus making the operation illegal.
Upon the issuance of the warrant, NBI 7 agents, led by Agent on Case Atty. Wenceslao Galendez Jr., trooped to the plant and caught the three men refilling metal canisters with LPG.
The NBI 7 also seized at least P2 million worth of equipment needed for the plant operation such as LPG tanks, re-labeled and repainted LPG cylinders.
The three men will be charged for violation of Section 40 of the Republic Act (RA) 11592 (LPG Industry Regulation Act), Sec. 3 of Batas Pambansa No. 33 as amended by Presidential Decree 1865 and Sec, 2 of RA 623, an Act to Regulate the Use of Duly-Stamoed or Marked Bottles, the NBI 7 said.