Three members of a notorious robbery holdup group were killed in a shootout with police after they held up passengers at a bus station in Makati City past midnight yesterday.
Chief Superintendent Tomas Apolinario Jr., Southern Police District (SPD) director, identified the slain suspects as Jayson Brondial, leader of Brondial robbery-holdup group; members Noel Fajardo and Donald Bacsal.
Initial investigation showed that the three suspects died after they exchanged fire with members of the Tactical Motorcycle Reaction Unit (TNRU) and intelligence operatives of the Makati City Police around 12:45 a.m. at the corner of Chino Roces Avenue and Metropolitan Avenue in Barangay San Antonio.
Prior to the shootout, Brondial group on board a black motorcycle with no plate number held up commuters at Buendia-Edsa bus stop and, at gunpoint, divested their personal belongings.
Police, who had been monitoring their movements, chased the armed men, leading to death of the trio.
Brondial group was involved in a series of robberies in buses, carinderia, and spas in southern part of the metropolis and in Manila area in the past few weeks, according to police report.
Just last Monday, January 6, four robbers held-up a massage parlor in Makati City and carted away the establishment’s P20,000 earnings and gadgets.
Police recovered a caliber.45-caliber pistol and .38-caliber guns, eight cellphones and the motorcycle the suspects used.
Police are now conducting a follow-up investigation to trace the other members of the group.
In September 2015, Pasay police arrested nine members of the Brondial robbery group then led by Jeric Brondial.
Apparently, the group has managed to resume their operations since then. (Martin A. Sadongdong)