Despite relentless efforts by the police to prevent crimes, robbers struck another 24-hour convenience store in Cebu City.
Two robbers armed with .45 cal. pistols attacked Route Stop store in M. Velez Street, Banawa, barangay Guadalupe at 4 a.m. yesterday and took away P23,000 from the store’s cash register and three cellular phones.
The crime happened a few hours after Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Chief Senior Supt. Noli Romana ordered a manhunt against members of the crime group believed to be led by dismissed policeman Eugene Salingay.
Honelyn Arogante, cashier of the store, said while she was fixing the store’s shelves, two unidentified men, one wearing a ball cap and the other a helmet went inside their store, pretending to be customers.
Guadalupe Police Station chief, Chief Insp. Allan Rosario, said the robbers disarmed security guard Jonalyn Guimary of her .38 cal. revolver and emptied the cash box containing the store’s sales from Arogante.
The cellphones used for pre-paid credit top ups were also taken away.
The two suspects then went out and boarded two waiting motorcycles.
When showed the CCTV footage when Alberto’s Pizza in P. del Rosario St., Cebu City was robbed, Route Stop robbery witnesses found a resemblance with one of the robbers.
Rosario denied policemen under his station were remiss in protecting their jurisdiction.
“Hindi naman tayo nagkulang kasi may beat patrol tayo sa area kaya yon nga lang, hindi yon ang binabantayan ng tropa,” said Rosario.
(We have not been remiss in our duties as we do have a beat patrol in the area, but the robbers probably struck at a time our patrol is not watching.)
Rosario advised owners of the businesses not to allow their security guards to have multiple tasks. He again reminded the business owners to have functioning CCTVs.
Route Stop’s CCTV was unplugged when the crime happened.
Taunting
Supt. Romeo Santander, chief of the City Intelligence Branch (CIB) of Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said based on testimonies of witnesses and the method of the robbery, it could be possible that the Route Stop robbers belong to the Salingay group.
Salingay’s group has been tagged in the heist of a 7-11 store in barangay Duljo-Fatima around 2 p.m. last Tuesday, the Alberto’s Pizza in P. Del Rosario Street last Oct. 30, and the Western Union Guadalupe heist last Oct. 9.
“Sa sige nato’g divulge-divulge mura bitaw og nigara ba. Abi nato og katong pag-divulge nato, wa man, nigara man nuon,” said Santander.
(The more we expose their crime, the more brazen they have become. We thought they will lie low with our exposes, but they have not.)
Santander said they have more reason to believe that dismissed policeman, Eugene Salingay, is involved in the recent spate of robberies because of the way they operate. “As modus nila, naay similarity and dakong possibility nga sila gihapon, the way sa ilang style sa pag-execute,” Santander said.
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