ILOILO City – The Philippine National Police’s Highway Patrol Group (HPG) has been tapped to help catch motorcycle-riding criminals across Western Visayas.
With the assistance of HPG, the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) would be able to effectively implement its “Clean Rider” campaign, said Police Brigadier General Rene Pamuspusan, regional police director.
The “Clean Rider” is meant to ensure the safety and security of motorcycle riders, impound stolen motorcycles and stop motorcycle-riding criminals.
Policemen would be stepping up the inspection of motorcycles via checkpoints, said Pamuspusan.
The “Clean Rider” drive entails the registration of motorcycles at police stations so they could be issued with stickers.
Absence of the stickers would alert policemen to go after such likely unregistered motorcycles.
“The HPG is more on the enforcement of traffic laws and investigation of crimes committed on national highways. It can thus help us address crimes perpetrated by motorcycle-riding lawless elements,” said Pamuspusan.
Recently, call center agent Mark Muller, 38, of Jaro district, was shot dead by unidentified assailants onboard a motorcycle in Taft North village, Mandurriao district.
Bystander Christopher Jinon, 30, of Barangay Bularan, Banate, Iloilo was also hit by a stray bullet.
Barely 24 hours after the incident, another person was gunned down by riding-in-tandem suspects in Zone 2, Barangay East Timawa, Molo district.
The victim, Robert Isubal, 43, was doing an errand around 3 p.m. when the riding-in -tandem suspects peppered him with bullets.
On Aug. 18, Crystal Faith Jastiva, 25, who had just visited her partner in jail, was killed by two unidentified men on a motorcycle outside the Metro Bacolod District Jail – male dormitory along Magsaysay Avenue, Barangay Singcang-Airport in Bacolod City.
In all these cases, said Pamuspusan, policemen were unable to catch the assassins or identify them./PN
