CONGRATULATIONS are in order to the modern-day version of Sherlock Holmes from the Philippine National Police specifically from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group who solved the rape-slay case of a 15-year old girl in Bustos, Bulacan last April 12.

Kudos in particular goes to new PNP-CIDG director, Brigadier General Ronald Lee who ordered all his concerned units to join hands with their local counterparts to crack the case of the poor Princess Marie Dumantay amid calls for justice from his grieving family, relatives and friends.

As PNP chief, General Jun Azurin has been emphasizing, the job of the police can be described thru the acronym PPSO which is short for P-revent crime (thru operations); P-reempt crime (thru intelligence); S-olve crime (thru investigations); and O-rganize and mobilize the community (thru their police-community relation divisions).

This week, the PNP-CIDG showed how good old fashioned police investigation is vital in solving a crime, in particular the case of Dumantay with the arrest of the confessed suspect identified as Gaspar Maneja Jr. alias ‘Jose Francisco Santos’ in his hiding place in Pamplona, Camarines Sur.

Officers from the CIDG Camarines Sur Provincial Field Unit headed by Lieutenant Colonel Mederic Villarete, with the help of operatives from the Bulacan Police Provincial Office, the Police Regional Offices 3 and 5, the PNP Highway Patrol Group and the PNP Intelligence Group, tracked down and arrested the suspect.

The 43-year old suspect turned out to be the subject of warrants of arrest for rape and two counts of violation of Republic Act 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse law issued by Judge Ma. Cristina Juanson of the San Jose del Monte City Regional Trial Court Branch 5 on April 12, 2021.

Brig. Gen. Lee said that the suspect has also been charged with rape with homicide and using fictitious name and concealing true name before the Malolos City Prosecutor’s Office in Bulacan last Wednesday in connection with the teenager’s case.

What does this mean? For me, it means that the suspect has been at-large for 16 months with law enforcement authorities either from the PNP or the NBI failing to arrest him during the period. It simply means that the slippery suspect took advantage of his freedom to scout for more victims, the last of them Dumantay.

This brings to my mind the order of Gen. Azurin for all PNP units to see to it that they will be able to account for all Most Wanted Persons and other personalities whose arrest have already been ordered by proper courts to prevent the possibility they would commit more crimes.

The PNP chief has particularly ordered the CIDG, the Highway Patrol Group, Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group, the Intelligence Group,, Anti-Cybercrime Group, Drug Enforcement Group, Anti-Kidnapping Group and all 17 Police Regional Offices to go all-out in arresting wanted criminals.

How I would love to see these PNP units accounting for dozens of targets-specifically those involved in major crimes like drug trafficking, rape, robbery, murder and homicide, illegal possession of guns and explosives, carjacking, highway theft, hijacking and terrorism at the end of every week. This should actually be the major challenge for all of them to really ensure that our streets would be safe from criminals.

Speaking of the fine job accomplished by the PNP, the public must appreciate the fact that there is one wanted ‘rapist-killer’ out of the streets and now in jail. All Filipino parents who have young daughters leaving the confines of their homes to go to school or even work should rejoice over the arrest of that devil incarnate.

Equipped with plenty of information about the sex fiend, the PNP-CIDG captured him in his hiding place in Barangay Veneracion in Pamplona, Camarines Sur last Thursday, six days after the body of the teenager who was also believed to have been sexually molested was discovered in a grassy area in Bustos town.

It turned out that the victim was last seen boarding the suspect’s vehicle on August 10, hours before her body was discovered. The victim, a known cycling enthusiast in Bustos died due to hemorrhage resulting from multiple injuries in the head. There were indications she was sexually abused too.

The family of the victim have thanked the PNP in general and the CIDG in particular for arresting the suspect although the slain teenager’s mother had expressed suspicion that there were more individuals involved in her daughter’s case. The CIDG is looking into such claim.

Brig. Gen. Lee said that recovered from the suspect was a black vehicle believed to have been ridden by the victim before she was assaulted and killed and her body dumped in Bustos. The vehicle is now being subjected to a forensic examination to find out more clues and other pieces of evidence, including the suspect and the victim’s DNA which would form part of the evidence against him.

Lt. Col. Villarete said that they were able to trace the suspect thru information they gathered from different sources. Accordingly, Maneja met the victim in a bikers’ group. It is believed that after the committing the gruesome crime, the suspect fled to Bicol and even hid for some time in the forest using the same vehicle.

Now under the custody of the Bustos police, the accused vowed to fully cooperate with the ongoing investigation of the teenager’s rape-slay case and even apologized to her family, claiming he would be telling only the truth and nothing but the truth.

Brig. Gen. Lee has attributed the arrest of the suspect to the enhanced coordination of his Bulacan and Camarines Sur provincial offices and the Bulacan PPO specifically the Bustos Municipal Police Station which initially handed the investigation of the heinous crime.

“Yun pong succes ng kaso na ito ay masasabi ko na dahil ‘yun sa pakikipagtulungan lahat ng ibang unit ng ating pulisya lalong lalo na ‘yung pagbibigay agad ng data o information from the Bulacan Police Provincial Office. Ito ay immediate at timely information na naibigay nila ay naaksyunan agad namin at nahuli agad-agad,” the new PNP-CIDG director from Philippine Military Academy ‘Tanglaw-Diwa’ Class of 1992 said.

He also thanked the PRO3 headed by Brig. Gen. Cesar Pasiwen and the PRO5 under Brig. Gen. Rod Dimas for fully supporting them in their operation to arrest the suspect. “It is like hitting two birds with one stone. With this united effort from the police, justice was once again served,” Lee said.

Congratulations to all. May your tribe really increase.