Category: Peace and Order

PBA star Arwind Santos condoles with family of SAF fan

Published by Ellen on February 1, 2015

Police Inspector Joey Sacristan Gamutan, 33, of the elite Special Action Force, was a fan of the San Miguel Beermen.

He won a bet in the championship game for 2015 Philippine Cup title between the San Miguel Beermen and Alaska Aces last Jan. 21. He was so happy he told his wife, Merilyn, that he will treat her and their five-year old daughter Megan (they have a one year old child) at Jollibee when he comes home after the very important operation he is part of is accomplished.

It would be a triple celebration aside from his favorite PBA team’s victory: Jan. 26 is the birthday of Megan and Jan. 24 is their 6th wedding anniversary.

Joey never made it for the celebration he promised Merilyn and Megan.

On Jan. 25, he was part of the select group who went into Tukanalipao village in Mamasapano, Maguindanao to capture Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir alias ”Marwan” and Basit Usman, a bomb-making expert, high up in the terrorists list of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.

1987 coup: The ties that bind PNoy and Purisima

Published by Ellen on October 2, 2014

President Aquino with PNP Chief Alan Purisima.

President Aquino’s dogged defense of Police Chief Alan Purisima despite revelations of acts of irregularity and the public’s frustration over breakdown of law and order, have led many to ask what’s behind the closeness of the two.

While in New York last week, Aquino described the PNP Chief as ““not capricious.” Back in Manila after information about the luxurious Nueva Ecija vacation house with an attic on a 4.5 hectare property with a separate pavilion, separate four- car garage with quarters, a 7.5m x 15m pool, Aquino maintains the line that criticisms against his administration are really meant to block reforms that he is instituting.

It should be recalled that in order to install Purisima as PNP chief before the 2013 elections, then PNP Chief Nicanor Bartolome was forced to retire three months before his retirement age of 56.

EDSA hulidap case: Upside of social media

Published by Ellen on September 9, 2014

Social media, internet-based networking sites – the most popular of them Facebook and Twitter – has changed the world and our lives.

Social media is a communication tool and like all things in this world, its value depends on how users handle it.

What happened last Sept. 1, when a bypasser who witnessed a crime taking place in the middle of a major highway (EDSA) in broad daylight, captured the scene in his smartphone and posted the picture in Twitter, is an example of the upside of the digital technology and social media.

NAIA3 foiled bomb try: Comic relief or diversionary tactic?

Published by Ellen on September 2, 2014

Grandeur Guerrero's moment on TV during June 12 rally in front of Chinese Embassy. — Grandeur Guerrero’s moment on TV during June 12 rally in front of Chinese Embassy.

So far, these are the facts about Monday’s incident at the NAIA3:

At around 1:45 a.m. last Monday, operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested three men assembling improvised explosive devices (IEDs) inside a parked white Toyota sport utility vehicle at the parking lot of Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.

The three were later identified as Grandeur Pepito Guerrero, Emmanuel San Pedro, and Sonny Yohanon.
News reports based on the NBI’s report said the operatives found with the suspects plastic bottles of gasoline with firecrackers. The NBI also said seized firearms from three including one .38 caliber revolver.
They also found anti-China leaflets and other materials in the vehicle.

Thoughts of a lawyer’s wife on the latest Ampatuan massacre controversy

Published by Ellen on August 8, 2014

By Mylah Reyes Roque

Today, I write about the man I am married to but who I barely talk about or refer to in the social media – not that I actively engage in it in the first place. My friends know of course that my husband is the lawyer and law professor Harry Roque, who is also a private prosecutor in the Ampatuan trial. I don’t mention this in Facebook but I don’t hide it either. He is “public”; I on the other hand am happy to keep and remain with my small circle of friends. He maintains a blog, is active on Twitter and has two Facebook accounts, one active and one “unable to accept any more friends.” My Facebook, on the other hand, has just slightly over 500 friends and I use twitter only to check on #mmda and #walangpasok.

So for the first time I break my quiet as regards Harry.

Harry, or a person identified with a cell phone number corresponding to his, is being accused of accepting P10 million and a car from the Ampatuans to sell out his clients in the Ampatuan trial. The accusation comes from an alleged informant of another private prosecutor. The information is based on handwritten entries in somebody’s notebook. This prosecutor refuses to fully identify the informant but she made a public announcement anyway. The alleged informant also accuses some of Harry’s clients of accepting payment from the Ampatuans. These stories about payoffs to the victims are an old hat. Yesterday, the demolition job was on the fiscals and justice undersecretary. Today Harry is the one accused of being on the take. One can keep trying to throw mud but it won’t always stick.

I was not the only one duped by “Mon Tulfo”

Published by Ellen on November 19, 2013

My first person account last Monday on being duped by a con artist who introduces himself as “Mon Tulfo” elicited responses, two of them from fellow victims.

One was retired Marine Col. Ariel Querubin.

Remember last August, there was a news report of death threats to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, National Bureau of Investigation Nonnatus Rojas, and Atty. Levito Baligod, lawyer of whistleblowers in pork barrel scandal involving businesswoman Janet Napoles?

Querubin said a “Mon Tulfo”, who really sounded very much like tri-media personality Ramon Tulfo, called him up saying that the hired assassin to De Lima, Rojas, and Baligod contacted him and said he was backing out of the contract. “Mon Tulfo” said he and his men were bringing the person to Manila and they will have a press conference at max restaurant near the DOJ.

I’d like to think Lacierda was just acting stupid

Published by Ellen on September 19, 2013

The President's spokesman — The President’s spokesman

Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda probably thought the Filipino people are stupid or else why would he say that the reason why the President has not made statements on other national issues was because he has no access to Manila newspapers.

In this day and age of internet and cellphones!

Lacierda said Wednesday: “You know, the problem in Zamboanga is that no planes are flying there. They’re not getting news there. No newspapers are being flown there.”

Lacierda thinks we will believe that? I’d rather think he was not in the mood to think up of excuses why the President has not made a statement on the filing of charges against three senators and 34 other persons in connection with the pork barrel scam operated by Janet Lim Napoles who surrendered to him last Aug. 28. He even brought her to Camp Crame to make sure she is safe and well taken care of, remember?

Usi na rin ang Presidente

Published by Ellen on June 1, 2013

Ayun sa report, dalawang oras maganap ang pagsabog sa Serendra, isang pangmayamang lugar sa Taguig City Biyernes ng gabi, dumating si Pangulong Aquino at si Interior Secretary Mar Roxas.

Galing, di ba? Aksyun agad.

Ano nga ba ang aksyun?

No need for Lacson to harm Mancao

Published by Ellen on May 6, 2013

On Nov. 16, 2011, there was a hearing of the Dacer-Corbito kidnapping and murder case. That was the day after Gloria Arroyo was blocked at the airport when she attempted to leave the country for Singapore.

A source who was at the courtroom said the prosecution’s witness, former Police Senior Superintendent Cezar Mancao II, was fidgety because his lawyer, Ferdinand Topacio, was not around.

Someone told Mancao, “Hindi na darating yun. Napuyat yun kagabi. (He won’t be coming. He is tired due to to last night’s incident.”

Topacio never made it to the court that day and the hearing was postponed. He was present in subsequent hearings.

The weakest link in the Megamall heist

Published by Ellen on February 6, 2013

By Ace Esmeralda,VERA Files

A shop in Megamall after the robbery. Photo by Rio Ribaya from Yahoo.

Many things don’t fit in the statements of the police on the Jan. 26 Megamall robbery.

As of this writing, the Mandaluyong police have claimed to have “identified” two of the six suspects in the robbery. But in reality, they don’t have the two suspects’ names and addresses yet. What they have are cartographic sketches that matched the images captured by the CCTV and confirmed by the sales ladies of The Jeweler and F&C Jewelry stores. Ironically, the police were quick to tag the Martilyo (Hammer) Gang as suspects without knowing that pipe wrenches were used to smash the glass displays and that they haven’t identified by name and other personal details any of the robbers.

How did it happen?

At around 6:56 p.m. of that Saturday, the first of the six suspects entered the mall thru a supermarket entrance where the security guards on duty were performing their mandatory and required bag check and frisking. Five others were seen thru CCTV review to have entered the same door, seconds apart each other.