A purported vigilante group created to protect women and children from abuse and kill known rapists and child offenders in Laguna has been smashed by the local police, following its investigation into the killing of a 17-year-old male accused of sexually abusing his four young sisters last month, Laguna Police Provincial Office director, Colonel Randy Glenn F. Silvio said on Saturday.

The official said one member of the group called “Alakdan Scorpion Righteous Kill Anti-Crime” or ASRAC has been arrested while the rest of his cohorts are still being hunted as of press time.

Silvio said their investigation showed that the “Alakdan Group” was formed with a mission to protect all women and children against abuse and go after identified rapists and child tormentors.

He said that they unearthed the existence of the group following a thorough investigation conducted by officers of the Nagcarlan Municipal Police Station into the deadly shooting of the teenage suspect from Magdalena municipality last June 6.

The Laguna police director said the victim of the gun attack turned out to be the subject of criminal charges for violation of Republic Act (RA) 8353 or the Anti-Rape Law and RA 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse Law filed by the Magdalena Municipal Police Station (MPS) last May 4.

Members of the Magdalena MPS Women and Children Protection Division filed the charges against the accused for sexually abusing his four minor sisters whose names were withheld.

Silvio said that past 2 p.m. last Tuesday, the suspect-turned-victim was driving his motorbike on his way to Nagcarlan when he was tailed by two motorcycle-riding suspects.

When he saw an opportunity, the back-rider of the motorcycle suddenly shot the teenager several times without any provocation. The teenager lost control of his motorbike and crashed to the ground.

He was rushed by some first-responders to the Nagcarlan District Hospital where an attending physician declared him dead upon arrival.

Silvio said that following the shooting incident, the local police conducted a backtracking on all available CCTV footages in the area in order to identify and arrest the killers.

He said that a particular CCTV footage led to the identification of 30-year-old truck driver Lester Cortes as the driver of the getaway motorcycle. The suspect was arrested around 22 hours after the killing in his hiding place in Purok 2, Bgy. Mojon in Liliw municipality.

During questioning, the accused positively identified his back-rider-turned gunman as one Mark Kelly Callo, also a resident of Bgy. Mojon.

The suspect also confessed that they were members of the ASRAC, which was organized to become anti-crime volunteers in Liliw and other towns of Laguna in order to protect women and children against abuse and avoid rape cases.

The accused said that their brotherhood was also formed to maintain peace in their respective communities and “ensure that not a single woman will be abused physically or mentally” in the province since they want to be the biggest anti-crime group in the whole world.

Recovered from the arrested suspect was the getaway motorcycle, a gray Honda Click 125cc motorbike, and the t-shirt and short pants he was wearing when the crime was committed.

“We are exerting all efforts to identify and arrest the other members of the group who may have had a role in the killing of the young suspect and are asking the help of the public including netizens to solve this murder case since no one is above the law and we will not allow vigilante justice in any part of the province,” Silvio told the Journal Group.