Aired (January 13, 2024): Iba’t ibang probinsya sa Central Luzon ang nabiktima umano ng isang notoryus na robbery-holdup group o kilala bilang "Gapos Gang" dahil sa kanilang istilo ng pagnanakaw. Mahuli na kaya sila ng mga awtoridad? Panoorin ang video.
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00 [VIDEO PLAYBACK]
00:01 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:02 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:03 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:05 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:06 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:07 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:08 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:09 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:10 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:11 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:13 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:15 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:17 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:18 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]
00:19 There is a different arrangement.
00:21 The style of the captains.
00:27 They tie the victims to their feet and hands before they steal.
00:33 This group is known in the country as Gapos Gang.
00:41 Can their hunt for the beast be over?
00:48 That's why I...
00:50 December 18, 2023.
00:55 A group arrived in front of a gas station in Apalit, Pampanga, riding a red SUV.
01:06 Their first mode was to destroy their vehicle.
01:15 They didn't want to walk.
01:18 They were waiting for their victim, the supervisor.
01:21 Good morning, ma'am.
01:23 Good morning, Ricky.
01:24 How was your earnings last night?
01:26 Good, ma'am. We earned a lot last night.
01:28 Please come in. The cashier will wait for you.
01:30 I'll go inside.
01:40 Later, one of them entered the office.
01:45 The next scene was captured by CCTV.
01:53 In the video, the suspect pointed a gun at a female employee of the gas station.
02:01 Sir, please don't kill me.
02:05 Do you want to see my video?
02:07 Please don't kill me.
02:11 Don't kill me.
02:14 Sir, please don't kill me.
02:19 Don't kill me.
02:23 Don't kill me.
02:26 Get up.
02:28 Sir, please don't kill me.
02:33 I'm begging you.
02:37 A few seconds later, the suspect finished the victim's hands and feet with a knife and stabbed her mouth with a duct tape.
02:50 Yes, ma'am.
02:52 Good morning, ma'am.
02:53 So that the victim won't be able to get a chance to stand up, because she's barefoot,
03:00 she won't be able to scream because she's covered with a blanket,
03:03 and she won't be able to get a chance to drink because she's tied to herself.
03:09 The suspect forced the suspect to take the key to the cashier where the money was hidden.
03:20 The suspect immediately called the police because there was a man who was screaming and I asked the police officer.
03:26 The victim described the vehicle that the suspect used.
03:33 Will the victim be able to escape from the hands of the suspect?
03:41 Where will this lead to?
03:47 [Music]
03:50 I'm so scared. I hope you won't kill me, sir.
03:56 A group of people were caught in a gas station in Apalit, Pampanga.
04:01 The woman who was seen in the CCTV was hidden under the name of Elena.
04:08 First of all, because of the fear of the victim, they were just about to shoot.
04:16 [Crying]
04:19 Sir, please don't do this to me.
04:26 Sir, please don't do this to me.
04:29 The wires were there.
04:32 When they cornered the victim, they tied her to her hands and feet.
04:43 And sometimes, they used duct tape to cover the faces of the victims.
04:55 The suspect was trying to get the key to the cashier.
05:02 When he couldn't get it, Elena was forced to use a hold-up.
05:10 While the hold-up was going on inside the office,
05:14 another suspect was watching the surroundings of the gas station.
05:19 Until another person noticed that there was a commotion inside.
05:29 The suspect took the contents of the box that was worth 2 million pesos.
05:39 [Music]
05:42 So, upon the declaration of the management,
05:45 based on their inventory, they were able to get 1.9 million pesos.
05:51 Specifically, the amount of that kind of big amount that we know is 5 day sales of the gas station.
06:01 How can the victim be saved from the hands of the group?
06:07 In the ongoing investigation of the police,
06:10 it was found out that a few days before the discussion in the town of Apalit,
06:16 the group had another hold-up case in the nearby town of Pampanga.
06:21 On November 18, 2023, we had a robbery incident here in the city of San Fernando.
06:30 This is a hold-up. All of you, get down. No one moves. Get down. Get down.
06:35 The suspects here in the incident held up a restaurant that can be seen here in Lasatin Boulevard.
06:45 Did this group have any connection with the series of hold-ups in Central Luzon?
06:52 Before the hold-up in Gasolinahan in Apalit, Pampanga, happened,
07:02 the police investigated that several other robbery hold-ups were recorded in other towns of Central Luzon.
07:10 Just like what happened in a restaurant in San Fernando City, Pampanga.
07:15 A group of adults were involved in the various incidents that were held in Pampanga.
07:20 Their modus was that they would grab the hands and feet of the victims using an alarm.
07:28 And they would steal from them. Most of the time, they would steal from Target, Gasolinahan, and convenience stores.
07:35 On November 18, 2023, four members of the syndicate went to a restaurant in San Fernando.
07:44 The first member to enter the restaurant was to get a customer.
07:52 Where are they? Oh, they're just here. Sir, can you come here?
07:59 The suspects here did this after they entered the restaurant where they were grabbing the clients.
08:08 Until the other members of the syndicate entered the restaurant.
08:13 And a few moments later...
08:17 Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out of my cell phone!
08:23 And then the three of them followed. When the three of them entered, they locked the door.
08:31 Get out! Get out! Come here!
08:39 All of you who saw this, come here. Come on! Hurry up!
08:48 Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out!
08:54 Cell phone! Cell phone! Wallet!
08:58 Get out! Get out!
09:02 You! You! Cell phone! Wallet!
09:06 Get out! Get out! Get out!
09:09 You!
09:12 Are you okay? Cell phone! Cell phone!
09:17 You! Are you okay?
09:21 Wallet! Cell phone! Wallet!
09:26 The staff and customers of the restaurant were brought to the corner.
09:31 Just like the victims in Apalit, they also tied their hands and feet.
09:37 They were gathered in a corner, tied their hands, and then they took their belongings.
09:46 They were tied here and they took their belongings, cell phone and money.
09:55 [Music]
10:10 [Indistinct shouting]
10:33 [Music]
10:40 The cash that they got was around 66,000.
10:47 And then, the items that they got were less than a million.
10:56 Because of the laptops, iPhones, and other items that the victims owned.
11:03 In total, the value of the money and the items of the suspects reached around a million pesos.
11:12 But the negotiation of the syndicate is not yet over.
11:20 [Music]
11:27 [Indistinct shouting]
11:46 A robbery hold-up group stole 2 million pesos worth of a gasoline hand.
11:51 [Indistinct shouting]
11:55 [Indistinct shouting]
12:09 [Music]
12:19 And a restaurant in Pampanga, a restaurant worth a million pesos.
12:23 The victims were both fined by the syndicate.
12:29 [Crying]
12:34 After the robbery in a restaurant in San Fernando City, the group immediately got in their getaway vehicle.
12:41 While the other victim was in a hurry to get out.
12:48 We only got there the clients, the victims. We got there and they lost their belongings.
13:00 A week before the robbery, the police also found out that they robbed a convenience store in Dinalupian, Bataan.
13:11 We were able to identify one of the victims, whose name we will hide, Jeremy.
13:19 Two people entered the store, the two people. The first one is the one who is not that old.
13:29 After asking, the last man entered and he declared.
13:34 Just like what the suspects did in Apalit and San Fernando, Pampanga.
13:39 [Indistinct shouting]
13:41 Jeremy and his accomplice were also fined.
13:46 [Music]
13:49 He also got a watch and 18,000 pesos from the convenience store.
13:56 [Music]
14:02 What did you feel at that time?
14:05 I was just tied up. That's all I felt. They tied me up.
14:10 They were carrying a gun. They were in a hurry.
14:14 [Music]
14:17 On the night of December 11, 2023, another convenience store in the town of San Simon, Pampanga was robbed by the group.
14:27 We were able to get to the crime scene. The victims were standing there.
14:31 They were not looking at what was happening in the area.
14:34 It was a bit confusing because they opened their belongings and they were robbed.
14:38 It was like they didn't have anything on them at that time.
14:41 In the pictures distributed by San Simon PNP,
14:44 you can see that the vault where the store's 387,000 pesos was hidden was destroyed.
14:54 The ATM machine inside the store was also damaged.
15:01 They have tools to break the metal.
15:04 We are really good at metal. That's why they opened the vault.
15:09 There are small vaults. That's the problem with convenience stores.
15:12 The vaults are small and they are easy to open.
15:15 While the two victims were being held, the hands and feet were also broken.
15:20 The suspects were not caught, but this time,
15:25 a CCTV was able to capture the escape of the suspects from a nearby establishment.
15:32 How can CCTV help in solving the crime?
15:38 Based on the CCTV that they went to,
15:40 they entered the restaurant and this is where we got the CCTV from San Simon.
15:47 When the police investigated the holdup robbery in Central Luzon,
15:53 it was proven that the robbers were in one group.
15:57 Because of their similar style of robbery,
16:03 they were called Gapos Gang.
16:07 How can the notorious group be caught by the authorities?
16:14 A robbery holdup group went to various places in Central Luzon.
16:32 This is the holdup group.
16:33 This group first saw the robbery in the street.
16:58 Then, they followed the robbers to the villages of San Simon and San Fernando in Pampanga.
17:03 How can the police catch this group?
17:07 Another one of the robbers was the convenience store in San Simon, Pampanga.
17:17 This time, a CCTV was able to capture the escape of the suspects from a nearby establishment.
17:26 When the police investigated the holdup robbery in Central Luzon,
17:31 it was proven that the robbers were in one group.
17:35 Because of their similar style of robbery,
17:38 they were called Gapos Gang.
17:41 No one will go to the police.
17:43 One, two, three, four, five.
17:50 The last target they targeted was a gasoline station in Apalit, Pampanga.
17:56 Good morning, Ricky. How are you?
18:00 I'm okay, ma'am. We earned a lot last night. I'll just go inside later.
18:03 I'll just finish this.
18:18 The CCTV was able to capture the holdup robbery.
18:22 Do you want to show your family?
18:29 Sir, please forgive me.
18:31 Be quiet.
18:34 Sir, please forgive me.
18:38 Sir, please forgive me.
18:42 What's the matter?
18:44 Sir, please forgive me.
18:47 Sir, please forgive me.
18:49 Sir, please forgive me.
18:52 Sir, please forgive me.
18:57 Sir, please forgive me.
18:59 Sir, please forgive me.
19:02 Sir, please forgive me.
19:06 Sir, please forgive me.
19:08 Be careful.
19:25 Hurry up.
19:26 After they got the 2 million pesos, they ran away quickly.
19:41 Sir, sir, please help us.
19:48 Why?
19:50 We lost our gasoline.
19:51 Get in. Hurry up. Help him.
19:54 The police reported that Elena was working with the victim.
19:58 Calm down.
20:16 They took the car.
20:18 Sir, this is not the place.
20:21 I have a testimony that they were not able to escape.
20:24 The hot pursuit operation was immediately initiated to catch the notorious group.
20:30 Ma'am, we were patrolling that morning.
20:36 The COP advised us to bring the vital installations.
20:41 At the same time, the incident happened.
20:50 Did you see us?
20:51 No, no.
20:53 Please help.
20:54 Good.
20:56 We're dead.
21:06 Joe, hurry up.
21:10 We're dead.
21:12 You're being a nuisance.
21:18 You're being a nuisance.
21:19 When the traffic was narrowed, the suspect used the vehicle.
21:26 Sir, it's a big car.
21:29 We were attacked by 2 of them.
21:36 This is when the police caught the 2 suspects.
21:47 At the back.
21:48 The suspects, Ariel De La Cruz and Renato Esquera, were identified.
21:53 Aside from the theft, the 2 were also involved in various cases of drug possession and illegal drugs possession.
22:01 Regarding the suspect, we obtained possession of drugs,
22:07 specifically, the methamphetamine hydrochloride or what we call Shabu.
22:13 The drug test was positive for our suspect.
22:17 Inside their vehicle, some of the items were recovered,
22:23 such as a high caliber gun, grenade, and some packages of Shabu.
22:29 The PNP also learned that the vehicles used by the group in their theft came from a red Accar.
22:38 Based on their previous actions,
22:41 they first used a white van.
22:44 During the conversation, they exchanged the van because the van was hot and they could find another vehicle.
22:52 Meanwhile, the victims, Elena and Jeremy, also went to the Appalachian Police Station to identify the last suspects.
23:03 Do you know the 2 suspects?
23:07 This is the contact.
23:09 I don't want to talk to them.
23:11 Sir, they are like me.
23:12 That's right.
23:14 They are the one who held me up.
23:16 I thought I would die.
23:18 You are animals, you devils.
23:21 I remember one of them.
23:23 He was the one who parked the vehicle.
23:25 That's them.
23:27 According to the victims, it's confirmed that they are the one who held them up and stole from them.
23:34 Do you know them?
23:36 That's them. Their faces are so familiar.
23:39 Yes, sir. Their faces are like that.
23:41 That's them, sir.
23:44 That's Rilo.
23:45 Oh my God!
23:51 That's Rilo, sir.
23:52 You are animals.
23:54 We thought that you won't let us go home alive.
23:56 Sir, don't let them go.
24:01 Like Rilo, where Rilo is the victim, he was recovered from the suspect who was caught in the town of Apalit.
24:10 Aside from that, their clothes like their bullcap or sombrero and bagpack were also recovered positively from the town of Apalit where they were arrested.
24:29 They were charged with robbery and holdup because of the evidence found by Apalit Municipal Police.
24:35 Ariel and Renato will also face various charges like illegal possession of firearms and explosives and illegal possession of drugs.
24:45 The witnesses were a big help especially the CCTV footage to quickly capture the suspects.
24:55 Based on the inquest resolution, they are here in our station while their commitment to transfer to the respective provincial jail is pending.
25:06 As of now, several members of the Gapos Gang are still being targeted by the authorities.
25:12 Are there still suspects that can be traced?
25:14 There are still suspects, sir. We are still investigating their locations.
25:20 Sir, their accomplices were also aware that they were caught by their group.
25:28 The victims are longing for justice for what happened to them.
25:33 Until next Saturday, for the continued investigation of the truth and the search for the truth, I am John Consulta and this is the Pinoy Crime Stories.
25:48 [Music]