AGENTS of the Philippine National Police (PNP) accounted for over 19,000 wanted persons in the country during the first 100 days of General Dionardo B. Carlos who has ordered a massive effort to arrest all lawbreakers covered with warrants of arrest issued by different courts nationwide, the Journal Group learned yesterday.

Of the total, 27 are Most Wanted Persons (MWPs) with reward money offered by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of National Defense (DND); 4,7724 are MWPs without reward and the rest of 14,264 are described as Other Wanted Persons.

Gen. Carlos said the 27 MWPs are the subject of a total of P15.340 reward money, 21 of them MWPs covered by DILG Memorandum Circulars while six are members of the Communist Party of the Philippines/New People’s Army covered by DND-DILG Joint Orders on Reward.

The wanted CPP/NPA personalities had a total P12.350 bounty on their heads.

The PNP’s major accomplishments against wanted persons during the first 100 days of Gen. Carlos or from November 13, 2021 to last February 21 has been cited as a major contributory factor to a major reduction in crimes in the country.

Since then, more wanted persons specifically most wanted rape suspects have been tracked down in their hiding places by the 17 Police Regional Offices as well as different PNP National Operational Support Units led by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) now under Brigadier Gen. Eliseo DC Cruz.

From February 20 to February 26, Cordillera Police Regional Office director, Brig. Gen. Ronald O. Lee said they managed to jail 45 wanted personalities in the region, 18 of them in Benguet followed by 12 in Baguio City; six in Abra and four each in Apayao and Kalinga provinces.

Brig. Gen. Lee said of the 45, nine are among the MWPs in the Provincial, City, Municipal and Station Level lists. The suspects were wanted for criminal offenses such as murder, frustrated homicide, violation of the anti-child abuse law, attempted rape and large-scale illegal recruitment.

PRO5 director in Bicol region, Brig. Gen. Jonnel C. Estomo said they have also accounted for dozens of wanted rape suspects, five of them caught last week, all facing non-bailable rape cases. their stepped-up effort to account for all persons covered with warrants of arrest in the region.

“We are going all-out to prove that Bicol region is no place to hide for wanted criminals. We are also ensuring the public that we will pursue all wanted persons in the region even though they have sought refuge in different parts of the country,” said Estomo.

On the other hand, the PRO8 in Eastern Visayas headed by Brig. Gen. Bernard M. Banac last week reported the arrest of nine MWPs in the region, eight of them in hiding from the law after being charged with non-bailable rape offenses.

Brig. Gen. Banac said two of the suspects who were considered as among Region 8’s most wanted persons were tracked down in their hiding places in Metro Manila.

He identified the two as Arnie Pontilla,38; and Joebel Mina, 28, tagged as the 5th and 8th most wanted men in Eastern Visayas respectively until they were caught in their hiding places in Quezon City and Caloocan.

The PRO8 director said Pontilla was arrested in his residence in Barangay 52-B in Commonwealth Avenue, Q.C. by PRO8 and Q.C. Police District operatives.

The suspect is the subject of a non-bailable warrant of arrest for two counts of rape in relation to Republic Act 7610 or the anti-child abuse law issued by the Tacloban City RTC Branch 7.

Mina, the subject of a warrant of arrest for rape issued by the same Tacloban City court was arrested in Sampaloc Street in Bgy. 178, Camarin, Caloocan City by members of the Palo Municipal Police Station, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the QCPD under Brig. Gen. Remus B. Medina.

Meanwhile, the PRO4-B in Mimaropa region headed by Brig. Gen. Sydney S. Hernia said it has arrested a total of 312 wanted persons in the five Mimaropa from January 1 until last March 3 as a result of their continuing manhunt operations versus lawbreakers in the region.

Brig. Gen. Hernia said that 82 of the captured suspects were among the region’s MWPs as shown by records from their Crime Information Reporting and Analysis System or CIRAS.

The arrested suspects include 70 men tagged as MWPs in the region and are facing charges ranging from rape, murder and homicide and violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

Hernia said that latest to be placed in jail after more than nine years in hiding was

Dennis Capunong, one of the region’s most wanted rape suspects who was arrested during a manhunt operation in Brooke’s Point in Palawan.

The official said Capunong is the subject of a non-bailable warrant of arrest for statutory rape issued by the Puerto Princesa City Regional Trial Court Branch 47 on December12, 2012.

Hernia said the suspect was tracked down in his hiding place in Barangay Pangobilian in Brooke’s Point last Thursday afternoon by PRO4-B operatives following information provided by some concerned citizens.

The 2nd identified as Jupiter Estrada, is the subject of a non-bailable warrant of arrest for three counts of rape in relation to Republic Act 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse Law.

Tagged as the no. 1 most wanted person in Oriental Mindoro, the suspect was caught in his hiding place in Bgy. Dangay, Roxas last Friday by combined agents from the Roxas Municipal Police Station, Oriental Mindoro Police Provincial Office and the PNP Special Action Force.

The suspect is being held at the Roxas District Jail being run by the Bureay of Jail Management and Penology.

Two most wanted NPA members were captured by security troops in separate operations in Caraga and East Samar region last this week.

The two were identified as Roel Mangadlao alias ‘Ka Ruel,’ a known member of the NPA Guerrilla Front 19A in Surigao del Sur and Jonas Ramirez alias ‘Ka Allan/Diwan, tagged as the 7th most wanted NPA personality in Eastern Samar.

PRO13 director, Brig. Gen. Romeo M. Caramat Jr., said members of the Lianga Municipal Police Station and the 1303rd Maneuver Company of the PRO13 Regional Mobile Force Battalion arrested Mangadlao in his hiding place in Lianga municipality in Surigao del Sur.

The suspect was placed under arrest on the strength of two warrants for attempted murder issued by the Lianga Regional Trial Court Branch 28 with a P240,000 recommended bail.

Caramat said the suspect was accused of involvement in an NPA attack on Army soldiers securing the Simowao-Neptune Road in Lianga on February 19, 2020.

Two Army troops were wounded during the attack perpetrated by members of the Guerrilla Front 19 of the CPP/NPA’s North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee, said Caramat.

Brig. Gen. Banac said members of the Eastern Samar Police Provincial Office, Borongan City Police Station and the General MacArthur Municipal Police Station arrested the 36-year old Ramirez in Bgy. Laurel in Gen. MacArthur municipality.

Brig. Gen. Banac said the suspect is the subject of a non-bailable warrant of arrest for murder issued by the Guian, Eastern Samar RTC Branch 3. “We have accounted for the 7th most wanted person in Eastern Samar,” said the PRO8 director.

“This will be a stern warning to all the members of rebel and terrorists group who are still at large, the PNP will not cease in our efforts to serve justice to all your victims,” Gen. Carlos said as he congratulated his men for their successful manhunt operations.

“There is really no substitute to intelligence-driven operations and the support of the community,” said Gen. Carlos said as he ordered all other police units to continue accounting for most wanted men in their areas and hold them accountable for their crimes.