
Police busted on Monday morning, April 28, a three-man crime group with a modus of posing as members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in carrying out robbery in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
Police Maj. Gen. Anthony A. Aberin, director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), said two of the suspects were even wearing police patrol uniforms when their vehicle was flagged down in Binondo, Manila.
“Upon inspection, two of the suspects were wearing police patrol uniforms and claimed to be members of the police force but failed to present valid identification or mission orders,” said Aberin.
He said the third individual, who acted as the driver, was in civilian clothing but was later discovered carrying a revolver.
Police said they noticed a hand grenade in plain view inside the vehicle’s center console.
This resulted in their arrest and during the search, they recovered three handguns, another hand grenade two sets of police patrol uniforms and pants, and two pairs of license plates bearing the numbers GH 343A and NKI 8327 found inside the vehicle.
During the background check, Aberin said that one of the arrested suspects was a former police officer dismissed from service in 2022 while the other had never been a member of the PNP.
“Further investigation showed that the suspects are also linked to a robbery hold-up incident in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, and that one of them is a person of interest in a murder case in Plaridel, Bulacan in 2024,” said Aberin.
He said they are now checking if the confiscated firearms were used in other criminal activities in the past, adding that they are now preparing criminal charges against the arrested suspects.