City cops keep watch on possible basag-kotse binge during Dinagyang
After making their presence felt last week, Basag-Kotse suspects are now subjects of a tight monitoring by different units of the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO).
“We are not discounting the possibility that they would strike, especially that the city is embarking on a grand celebration, the Dinagyang Festival,” said ICPO director Senior Supt. Melvin Mongcal.
Relative to this, Mongcal said that he designated some intelligence and covert police operatives to take on the job against basag-kotse suspects.
The city police chief added that they have identities of several suspects involved in the basag-kotse operatives.
“We knew several suspects based on the tactical interrogation we made on arrested suspects,” Mongcal said.
But on top of police preparations, Mongcal appealed to car owners not to give opportunity to suspects to perpetrate crime.
“They should not leave their valuable items – laptops, cash, and guns – inside their vehicles,”
To note, after a two-month lull, Basag-Kotse suspects hit Iloilo City again almost two weeks ago.
In a span of less than an hour, they conducted two operations but they failed to accomplish the last one.
At around 6:45 in the evening, reports said that the suspects broke and robbed a Toyota Vios sedan with plate number ZKZ-930 parked in front of Sportsville at Brgy. Sambag, Jaro district.
The suspects took a laptop worth P38,000 and a Sony digital camera valued at P17,000.
At around 7:00in the evening, the suspects’ plan to rob a Nissan Navara pick-up was botched after the caretaker and security guard of Buto’t Balat Restaurant at Mandurriao district discovered their plan to break the vehicle’s windshield.
The three men immediately left the area on board a green Isuzu Trooper with plate number GRH-528.
But in a check made, Mongcal said that there was no match between the vehicle and the plate number.
It was gathered that the plate number was assigned to a delivery van of Star Viewing Network Inc. based in Silay City, Negros Occidental.
“It’s possible that the plate was stolen or it was changed,” Mongcal added.
Initial investigation had it that the Isuzu Trooper was also seen in the Jaro incident.
Police investigators are also looking at the possibility that the perpetrators belonged to the group of Cezar Parreño alias “Kabayo.”
It was gathered that Parreño’s son, Ian, is based in Silay City, where the plate number of the suspected vehicle originated.
ICPO records showed that the last Basag-Kotse incident in the metropolis was in November 4, 2009.
Again, the suspect was Parreño.
But members of the Regional Intelligence Unit (RIU) VI arrested Parreño for a murder charge at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Hospital in Burgos St., Bacolod City last December 17.
