SURIGAO CITY (MindaNews / 11 Nov) – The city’s police force has created a tracker team to run after the robbers who carted away P4.4 million in cash from a bank here last Monday.
Although tight-lipped on the issue, Supt. Reynaldo V. Acosta, city police chief, issued a memorandum today creating the tracker team composed of 20 policemen.
Furthermore, a special investigation team has been set up, he said. This team has police officers from Surigao City, Surigao del Norte, and from the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).
“Further, this office conducted dragnet operations particularly on the possible routes of the suspects,” Acosta added in his memorandum.
The police chief refused requests for interviews several times.
Last Monday morning, four robbers barged into the local branch of the United Coconut Planters Bank after they disarmed one of the security guards and held another at gun point.
The shocked bank employees and clients dropped to the floor as the robbers swiftly took their loot – bags containing cash from a depositor, which is the Surigao del Norte Electric Cooperative Inc., the lone power distributor in Surigao City and 11 towns in Surigao del Norte.
MindaNews was able to see today videos of the robbery from different angles caught by CCTV.
The robbery actually took only 40 seconds, not a minute as early reported.
Allaniel Bumanglag, the manager of the bank, declined MindaNews’s request to have a copy of the videos.
Bumanglag did not issue any statements regarding the bank heist as per advice from their head office.
Police investigators are also probing a possible inside job angle.
Aside from this, they are also reviewing videos in past robbery incidents in the city this year, which victimized a pawnshop and a businessman, among others.
Police Supt. Reynaldo V. Acosta, chief of police in Surigao City has been tight lip on the issue who several times refused to be interviewed.
