A GANG leader wanted for the killing of a man in Manila in 2005 has been arrested by National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents.
NBI Deputy Director Vicente De Guzman III identified the arrested suspect as Christopher “Topeng” Mariano, reportedly the leader and hitman of the True Brown Style (TBS) gang.
De Guzman said Mariano was arrested last Sept. 28 in Tondo, Manila, by agents of the NBI’s Environmental Crime Division (NBI-EnCD) based on an arrest warrant issued by Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 34.
The NBI official said Mariano was nabbed for the death Noel Villagracia who was shot multiple times and slashed in throat with a bolo by the suspect and his group in Tondo on Nov. 17, 2005.
De Guzman said Mariano, who also resides in Tondo, went into hiding for over a decade.
Last Sept. 6, the victim’s brother reported to the NBI that Mariano returned to his neighborhood in Tondo.
With this information, the NBI, after proper coordination with Manila Police District Tactical Operation Center, went to Tondo and arrested the suspect while he was playing at the basketball court of Barrio Obrero Youth Athletic Association.
De Guzman said TBS was formed in 2000 by a group of young men then. They sow terror in Tondo by eliminating rival gang members.
He added that the TBS is believed to be behind most unsolved killings in Manila. (Jeffrey Damicog)