Deputy chief of Makati police killed in hold-up incident

By Ronron
May 24, 2007

The deputy chief of Makati City Police was killed in a hold-up incident Wednesday night in Quezon City, a police report said.

Supt. Joven Bocalbos, 38, was driving his passenger Nissan Urvan van along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City when five of his passengers declared a hold-up at around 7:30pm, reads the report signed by Supt. Franklin Moises Mabanag of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD).

The Makati City Police chief, Supt. Gilbert Cruz, said Bocalbos is engaged in the public transport business to earn additional income “to make ends meet,” saying that the slain officer’s three children are still in elementary and high school.

A police superintendent’s base pay is around P18,000, but one has allowances that could make their gross pay to about P30,000 a month.

“That’s how it is for responsible policemen, they resort to extra-work to augment the little amount they get from the government,” Mabanag said when reached by phone.

Mabanag’s report said that Bocalbos was carrying 18 passengers, including the five suspects, aboard his van with plate number XED-744 prior to the incident.

The van was plying the Quezon Avenue–Almar, Zabarte Road in Fairview route.

Upon reaching Fairview, the five suspects declared a hold-up, showing off handguns. They then commandeered the van and brought Bocalbos at the back seat. Before the Fairview Market, the van took a U-turn and headed back to Quezon Avenue direction.

“Supt. Bocalbos, who was then moving his body while talking with the suspects, was bodily frisked by one of the suspects and suddenly shot him once in the head when his firearm was noticed,” Mabanag said in the report.

“Thereafter, the suspects… divested all the victims of their cash money, cellular phones and other personal belongings, including the firearm of Supt. Bocalbos. The suspects continuously drove the vehicle up to Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong City where they alighted and fled to unknown direction,” he added.

Once the suspects were gone, one of the passengers drove the vehicle to M-Tech Hospital in Makati City where Bocalbos was declared dead on arrival at around 8:45 pm.

Mabanag said they are looking at robbery as motive of the crime. “They (suspects) killed him because they could have realized he was a policeman since he was armed,” said Mabanag.

Based on descriptions provided by three passengers, artist’s sketches of three of the five suspects were released yesterday afternoon by the QCPD./DMS