Jonvic orders PNP crackdown on TBS

MANILA, Philippines —  Saying their actions pose a threat to society, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla yesterday ordered a crackdown on members of the True Brown Style (TBS) group, which has infiltrated communities not only in Metro Manila but nearly all provinces.

Remulla directed the Philippine National Police (PNP) to intensify operations against TBS members allegedly grooming minors into criminal activities such as robbing convenience stores.

He vowed to put a stop to the violence perpetrated by the group.

“This is unacceptable. We will get all of you,” Remulla told reporters after the distribution of 48 motorcycles to the Central Luzon police in San Fernando City.

Citing intelligence reports, Remulla said the TBS has presence in 16 cities and one municipality in Metro Manila as well as in 78 provinces, mostly in urban centers.

Remulla said they first observed the influence of the TBS following the strict implementation of the Safer Cities initiative, during which police recorded a spike in robbery cases while other crimes such as rape and physical injuries dropped.

“We traced all robbery cases to the TBS,” he said.

The group recruits potential members by ordering them to rob convenience stores and other establishments as a form of initiation, according to Remulla.

He said the TBS has leaders in every barangay and is intensifying its recruitment.

The PNP is strengthening early intervention measures to prevent young people from being drawn into the TBS and other criminal groups.

Instead of waiting for the TBS activities to escalate, PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said police regional offices boost information gathering and coordination with local authorities to prevent the group from further influencing communities.

Nartatez urged the public to report recruitment of minors by the TBS or other crime rings.