COMPOSTELA, Cebu – The alleged leader of the robbery gang responsible for the daring Greenbelt 5 heist in Makati City earlier this month was killed along with three others in a shootout with government agents in Barangay Estaca in this town late Thursday afternoon. A fifth suspect was arrested.

National Bureau of Investigation Region 7 Director Medardo Delemos confirmed that one of the four fatalities was Alvin Flores, the alleged leader of the gang bearing his name, as identified by NBI Manila agents who went to Cebu for the operation.

“We are certain that he is Alvin Flores,” Delemos told the Manila Bulletin Friday, although he said the slain suspects used various fake identifications, including driver’s licenses.

The Alvin Flores Gang was tagged responsible for the robbery at the Washington Jewelry Emporium inside the Greenbelt 5 Mall in Makati City last October 18. The suspects, who were caught in the surveillance camera, were armed with high-powered firearms and fled with imported Swiss-made watches.

The four men were staying at the Dodong’s Duplex Resort in Barangay Estaca in Compostela town, north of Cebu City, when elements of the Reaction, Arrest and Interdiction Division of NBI Manila, aided by their counterparts in NBI 7, came armed with search and arrest warrants.

SPO3 Renato Prieto of the Compostela police said he did not send men to the area because the NBI agents did not request assistance and to avoid any wrong encounter since some NBI agents were in civilian clothes, although he said the police were informed of the operation.

Delemos said they were about to serve the arrest warrants when his men were fired at. A gunfight ensued, during which the suspects ran to the back of the apartment toward the shore while shooting at the pursuing agents.

The gunshots were heard at the police station at about 5:30 p.m.

After the exchange of gunfire, Flores, Richie Hijapon, Mark Salamanca and a still unidentified male suspect lay dead on the ground, said Delemos.

Another suspect, Rene Batiancila, tried to flee through the waters but was later arrested by NBI agents because he could not swim. He was detained at the NBI office and will be brought to Manila.

Authorities recovered an M-16 rifle, K6-9 machine pistol, .45 caliber pistol and assorted ammunition.

Inside the house, the TV was still on and food was on the table, apparently ready for an early dinner.

The raiding agents carried an arrest warrant for illegal possession of firearms issued by Judge Alma Crispina Lacorte of the Regional Trial Court in Caloocan City.

Delemos said the NBI has been hot on the trail of the suspects, who alleged fled Manila through Sorsogon and came to Cebu by land onboard a private vehicle. The NBI 7 agents chanced at the group in Ormoc but the suspects went missing when the operation was about to be launched.

The suspects arrived in Cebu on Wednesday, said Delemos, and NBI agents from Manila, who have been tracking the suspects for months for various robbery cases, immediately flew in.

An agent assigned to the case got a tip from an asset that the group was in Cebu and had rented an apartment in sitio Lutaw Marikina, barangay Estaca. The apartment is about 25 meters from the beach.

“We sent out the entire NBI 7 team to aid the NBI Manila because of the fact that these suspects are dangerous and armed with high-powered guns,” said Delemos.

Although Delemos did not comment on whether or not the suspects have roots or cohorts in Cebu, the family names of the gang members are very common in Cebu. Delemos also could not say if the suspects were planning to stage robberies here.

“We can’t say that the group has already been neutralized because they still have other members,” said Delemos, although he stressed that the death of the gang leader and three others was a big setback to the notorious group.