FOUR men, including two Laguna policemen, accused of robbery-extortion were arrested by combined agents of the Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Police Regional Office 4-A in an operation in Calamba City on Monday, PNP-CIDG director, Chief Superintendent Samuel D. Pagdilao Jr. said yesterday.

Pagdilao said the operation spearheaded by the Regional Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit 4-A headed by Senior Supt.  Edwin Jose G. Nemenzo also resulted in the safe rescue of 39-year-old Rolando I. Montano, a resident of 87 P. Paterno Street in Poblacion, Biñan City, who was held captive for hours by the suspects.

He identified the arrested suspects as Police Officer 2  Jonathan Ricamonte, 36, a member of the Los Baños Police Station residing in Barangay Laguerta, Calamba City; PO2 Albert Mamalayan, 29, a member of the Louisiana Municipal Police Station living in Bgy. Burol, Calamba City; and civilians Marco Moncayo, 34, of Bgy. Paciano Rizal, Calamba City; and Renel Palinlagui, 40, of Bgy. Lecheria, Calamba City.

Pagdilao said the arrest of the suspects stemmed from a complaint of Montano’s 63-year-old mother Gloria, a widow, who informed the RCIDU4-A that her son was being held against his will by a certain “Sonny.”

He said Rolando told her mother through a text message that Sonny who was later identified as Emerson Silva of Sta. Rosa City, Laguna, was asking P15,000 from her in exchange for his liberty. Mrs. Montano later received a phone call from Sonny instructing her to deliver the amount at a designated rendezvous in Crossing, Calamba City.

Nemenzo said that at around 11 a.m. Monday, members of the Laguna Criminal Investigation and Detection Team led by  Chief Inspector Freddie Dantes together with Kim del Rosario, 22, a close friend of the victim, proceeded to Crossing, Calamba City, to entrap the suspect.

Nemenzo said that a few minutes after his men took their position at Crossing, an unidentified male person on board a red Honda motorcycle with plate No. VE 4949 arrived in front of South Star Drug store and picked up Del Rosario. The CIDT operatives failed to tail the motorcycle when it sped off, fearing such move might blow their cover.

Around 2:30 p.m. of the same day, Del Rosario appeared at the CIDT office and reported that the victim was being held at a safe house in Bgy. Lecheria, Calamba City. She also told CIDT operatives that she handed the marked money to a certain “Toto” who was later identified as Moncayo.

Nemenzo said Dantes and his men immediately launched an operation that resulted in the rescue of the victim and the arrest of suspect Palinlagui who was acting as the group’s “lookout.”

A follow-up operation at another safehouse resulted in the arrest of the two policemen and Moncayo who yielded the marked money consisting of three P500 bills and a P1,000 bill.

Nemenzo said his men also recovered two loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistols, a caliber .38 homemade revolver, a cal. .40 magazine loaded with seven rounds of ammunition and two sachets of shabu and paraphernalia from the suspects.”

Separate cases of extortion, illegal possession of firearms and violation of anti-drug law will be filed against the suspects who were brought to the Laguna CIDT office together with the confiscated pieces of evidence, he said.

With reports from Zaida Delos Reyes-Palanca, Gil Aman & Roy Tomandao