Mandaue mall heist suspects slapped with ‘robbery in band’ case; alert up vs suspects still on the run

The five suspects arrested in Bogo City are readied for transport from Bogo City to Mandaue City at past 2 p.m. of October 20, 2019. | Alven Marie A. Timtim

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The four arrested suspects in the robbery of jewelry stalls inside a mall in Mandaue City on October 19, 2019 have been charged by the police with robbery in band at the Mandaue City Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday, October 23, 2019.

Police Colonel Jonathan Abella, the director of the Mandaue City Police Office (CPO), told CDN Digital by phone on Wednesday evening that named in the complaint were Roel Nano Sumingit, 35, from Tangub City, Misamis Occidental; Jun Batanguso Candelaria, 38, from Naga City, Camarines Sur; Julivy Lumingkit Quirante, 43, Tangub City, Misamis Occidental; and Arnel Sumingit Cimafranca, 38, from Tangub City, Misamis Occidental.

Abella said the case of robbery in band will assure that the members of the group involved in the daring heist will be prosecuted together, tried in court together, and will most likely receive the same verdict from the court.

Unlike a normal robbery case where a person is prosecuted individually, a robbery in band case will allow a penalty to be served to all members of the band as stated in the Revised Penal Code.

Section 3 Article 296 of the Revised Penal Code states that “When more than three armed malefactors take part in the commission of a robbery, it shall be deemed to have been committed by a band. When any of the arms used in the commission of the offense be an unlicensed firearm, the penalty to be imposed upon all the malefactors shall be the maximum of the corresponding penalty provided by law, without prejudice to the criminal liability for illegal possession of such unlicensed firearm.”

However, Abella is concerned because a robbery in band case is bailable, and the court may grant the suspects bail, and this will give the four suspects a chance to be free again.

“If they get out of jail by bail, that is the court’s decision. We will just have to monitor them,” said Abella.

The suspects are now detained by the MCPO. The MCPO is also continuously looking for the four remaining suspects still at large who are believed to be carrying the stolen jewelry and cash.

A group of armed men barged inside the mall at around 8 p.m. of October 19 after overpowering several security guards and went on to ransack two jewelry stores and a currency exchange store at the ground level of the mall.

Hours later, some members of the group were spotted at the port in Bogo City in northern Cebu and were arrested. However, several of the suspects made a grab for the firearms of the arresting policemen, resulting to the death of four of the suspects in the hands of the cops. One was wounded and four others  were subdued and now detained.

Abella said they have sent advisories to the police and other law enforcement units  in the neighboring provinces of Bohol, Negros Oriental, Siquijor, and even Northern Mindanao to be on the look out for the four at-large suspects who are believed to have left Cebu to hide in these provinces.

“We have sent advisories to the neighboring provinces and to the Coast Guard to watch the ports for any possible entry of four men attempting to ship jewelry or bringing a suspicious amount of money,” said Abella.

He said they will continue to look for the remaining suspects, encouraged by the P500,000 reward offered by one of the jewelry stores robbed by the armed band.

Even so, he said the police will work on solving the case reward or no reward. /elb