KIDAPAWAN CITY (MindaNews/27 July) – Operatives of the Highway Patrol Group (HPG) in North Cotabato recovered on Wednesday a stolen motorcycle abandoned in a barangay here, a police officer said.
Senior Police Officer 1 Rey Sabornido, investigator at the HPG Cotabato, said the owner of the motorcycle, a Suzuki Raider 150, is from Laguna province.
Records from the Land Transportation Office showed that the vehicle was recorded as stolen on July 23, 2013 in Laguna.
“The motorcycle does not have a licensed plate. Fortunately, it did not go through a ‘facelift’. Its chassis and engine numbers are still intact. But when we checked those numbers, we found out it to be a stolen vehicle,” said Sabornido.
Residents from Purok Dos, Barangay Lanao told the HPG that the motorcycle had been parked in an abandoned lot since Tuesday.
Sabornido brought the vehicle to their station and contacted their counterparts in Laguna about it.
Police said several stolen motorcycles were brought here and other parts of North Cotabato and in nearby Maguindanao by a syndicate to undergo a “makeover” before these are sold to buyers.
Some of these “hot” motorcycles, police said, are used by lawless elements as their getaway vehicles.
“We continue to trace who brought this motorcycle here in our city. By doing that, we will be able to identify the group where he belongs,” Sabornido said. (Malu Cadelina Manar/MindaNews)