Town exec, barangay captains nabbed for guns, ammo

MANILA, Philippines - A municipal government official and three barangay captains have been arrested in Pangasinan and Bataan for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

Police said raids on the houses of Tammerlane Olores, municipal administrator of Bani town, as well as Marcelo Tugas and Ronaldo Bayna, village chiefs of Garrita and Colayo, respectively, yielded an M16 rifle, three caliber .45 pistols, a caliber .22 revolver and ammunition for various guns.

Ariel Canaria, municipal driver; Tirso del Rosario Jr. and Arsenio del Rosario were also nabbed.

An M16 rifle, three caliber .45 pistols, a 40mm Glock Gen 4 pistol, various ammunition and a hand grenade were  recovered when police raided the house of Enrico Cabiling, 36, chairman of Barangay Mambog in Hermosa, Bataan, on Tuesday, said Senior Superintendent Benjamin Silo, Bataan police director. Cabiling’s alleged cohorts Emmanuel Rivera, 51, and Xernan Jorge, 36, were also arrested.

The suspects are alleged members of a gun-for-hire syndicate tagged in the killing of Hermosa Councilor Danilo Basi last month.

The father of Enrico, businessman Rex Cabiling, is the alleged leader of the syndicate.

The raids were based on search warrants issued by local courts.