BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A 10-wheeler wing van truck carrying essential goods from Cebu was intercepted Saturday by authorities at the Danao Port in Brgy. Old Poblacion, Escalante City, Negros Occidental, for transporting guns.
Maj. Gil John Despi, Escalante City police chief, said that eight .45 caliber pistols with 15 magazines containing four live ammunition were recovered in the wing van truck loaded with feeds that was driven by Janito Chua of Brgy. La Granja, La Carlota City.
Seven of the eight confiscated .45 caliber pistols with 14 empty magazines, were wrapped in plastic and newspapers and placed inside three separate boxes behind the driver’s seat. Another Para Ordnance .45 pistol with a magazine containing four live ammunition was recovered from the possession of Chua, Despi said.
Chua, 53, claimed that he was asked to transport the firearms from Cebu to Negros Occidental, Escalante City police said.
Despi, however, raised the possibility that gunrunners are taking advantage of the delivery of essential goods from Cebu to Negros to transport firearms. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, delivery trucks of essential goods have “Don’t Delay” signs on them.
Alerted by their counterparts in Cebu on the transport of firearms on board M/V Manoling , Despi said operatives of the Highway Patrol Group and Coast Guard intercepted the wing van truck at the Danao Port designated control point, where vehicles from Cebu are checked for unauthorized transport of Locally Stranded Individuals and for disinfection.*
