4 hours ago
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CEBU CITY — Authorities arrested eight members of two gun-for-hire groups linked to recent shooting incidents here and nearby provinces.
Brig. Gen. Redrico Maranan, regional director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), said the suspects were apprehended during operations conducted from Jan. 17 to March 1.
He identified the arrested individuals as gunmen, lookouts and contacts involved in the crime operation.
Investigators found that the suspects carried out contract killings for money, often tied to personal grudges, relationship disputes or drug-related activities.
Police confiscated eight firearms and 166 grams of shabu during the operations.
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Authorities named the two groups as the Anyesa group and the Ilaya group, both operating in Cebu City and nearby areas.
Maranan said police expect a decline in shooting incidents following the arrests.
Four suspects remained at PRO-7 headquarters on March 10, while the rest were already detained at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology. One suspect was caught in a hot pursuit operation in Toledo City.
Intelligence reports indicated that these groups had been active for a long time and had victimized multiple individuals. Investigators also discovered that they had used mi-nors as gunmen or lookouts.
Police traced the confiscated firearms to the black market and planned to conduct ballistic examinations and cross-matching to determine if the weapons were used in past crimes.
Maranan emphasized that authorities would continue operations to dismantle these groups.
He pointed out that had the police not arrested the suspects, they would have been active during this election period, as these groups op-erate based on financial offers from their superiors.
"That is very possible because this group operates by getting money from clients, and since a huge sum is offered, they would do just any task, regardless of the purpose," added Maranan.
