Arroyo orders probe on Laguna bank massacre

MANILA, Philippines - President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on Friday called for the immediate investigation into the bank robbery in Laguna province that left nine people dead and another seriously wounded. "The president would like to extend her deepest sympathies for the families of all the fatalities in the gruesome and senseless killing in Cabuyao, Laguna," Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo told reporters. "She has ordered the immediate and thorough investigation on the incident so that those responsible be brought before the bar of justice," Fajardo added. Earlier, Laguna Gov. Teresita Lazaro offered a P100,000 bounty for the arrest of each suspect in the massacre, even as police teams fanned out throughout the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon) region in search for the robber-killers. The teams included three teams from the Laguna provincial police and five from the Calabarzon regional police's intelligence division. At least one of the suspects, a security guard, had been identified as Joel Bautista. At the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame, PNP chief Director General Avelino Razon said he has assigned security for a survivor identified as Isagani Pastor, reportedly a bank executive. Pastor is said to have been brought to an undisclosed hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound in the head, the PNP statement said. Likewise, Razon said he has ordered Director Silverio Alarcio Jr, PNP deputy director for operations, to revive the security clustering system in areas with bank branches and other commercial establishments. Under the security clustering system, a police team under a supervisor will be assigned to provide security in these clustered areas. Razon also instructed Alarcio to convene the Joint Anti-Bank Robbery Council (JABRAC) and the Bank Security Management Association (BSMA) to coordinate the smooth implementation of new security measures. - GMANews.TV