AT least six motorcycle-riding robbery suspects were killed in separate gunbattles with patrolling policemen in Metro Manila and Laguna over the past 24 hours as Philippine National Police chief Director General Nicanor A. Bartolome ordered a massive crackdown against riding-in-tandem criminals across the country.

Two of the suspects were killed in a shootout with combined agents of the Philippine National Police Highway Patrol Group and the Biñan City Police Station at 2 a.m. yesterday while two others died in a firefight with policemen in Taguig City five hours later. The two others were slain in an encounter with Manila policemen in Tondo past 4 p.m. Thursday.

The encounters came as Bartolome ordered his men nationwide to go hammer and thongs against motorcycle-riding criminals, saying ‘for every riding-in-tandem criminals neutralized, several crimes are solved.’

The PNP chief said motorcycle-riding criminals are notorious serial offenders as majority of them who have been arrested or killed in gunfights with the police were found to be involved in street crimes such as robbery-holdup, carnapping or even murder.

“Aside from the continuous police operations, the public are encouraged to participate in the effort by being vigilant and alert at all times in their respective community,” Bartolome said as he underscored the major need for a concerted effort to stop robbery-holdups and gun-for-hire activities being perpetrated by motorcycle-riding tandems.

In Biñan, Laguna, members of the Regional Highway Patrol Unit 4-A and the local police shot dead two armed motorcycle-riding suspects following a firefight on the national highway in Bgy. Halang,  said PNP-HPG director Chief Supt. Leonardo A. Espina.

Espina said members of the RHPU4-A under Senior Supt. Arnel Escobal were conducting an ‘Oplan Sita’ along the national highway in Bgy. Halang, together with the local police, when they spotted the two suspects on board a Yamaha Mio without a license plate.

The suspects ignored orders for them to stop and sped away, prompting the officers to give chase. A gunbattle at the vicinity of San Agustin Subdivision in nearby Bgy. San Francisco left  two motorcycle riders dead  on the spot.

Two loaded caliber .38 revolvers were recovered from the suspects.

In Taguig City, two armed robbers were killed in a shootout with members of the Taguig City Police Station’s Police-Community Precinct 3 near a Petron Gas Station in Lower Bicutan at 7 a.m. yesterday. The encounter took place shortly after the suspects were said to have killed their victim, said National Capital Region Police Office chief Director Alan LM Purisima.

In Tondo, Manila, two motorcycle-riding suspected robbers were killed in a firefight with members of the Manila Police District Station 2 along Mabuhay corner Sgt. Mabagos St. in Tondo 4:15 p.m. Thursday.

The suspects, identified as Joey Fernandez and Hector Causen, both 28 and members of the notorious Batang City Jail died on the spot after exchanging fire with the Manila policemen. Recovered from the suspects were a loaded .38 revolver and a cal. .45 pistol.  The motorcycle being used by the suspects yielded four small plastic sachets of suspected shabu, said Manila Police District director, Chief Supt. Alejandro F. Gutierrez.

Bartolome had said that the neutralization of riding-in-tandem suspects translate to the solution of other criminal cases as these suspects are most likely involved in other criminal activities as well aside from weapons possession and possible carjacking of the motorcycles used in their activities. With Zaida delos Reyes-Palanca & Roy Tomandao