5 students arrested for MHS burglary

The Department of Public Safety said it would ramp up its patrol checks on schools in the wake of rampant cases of burglary and theft at these institutions.

DPS spokesman Eric David also disclosed the arrest of two juveniles in connection with the recent theft at the Marianas High School. Police earlier disclosed the arrest of three other students aged 18 and 19.

“Classes are over. We are looking at every case of burglary and theft,” David said.

David said the department, however, would not detail policemen to conduct foot patrol in schools, saying those institutions have their own security guards.

At least three schools have been burglarized recently: Kagman High School, Marianas High School and Hopwood Junior High School.

David said some delinquent students could be targeting schools as a form of revenge against teachers and school authorities.

In the case of the burglary at MHS, David said that police have arrested two boys aged 17 and 16, who reside in Susupe and Chinatown, respectively.

Three other students have been placed in custody, including Sohn Cepeda Macaranas and Ernesto Bicalso Sablan, both 18 years old and residents of Chinatown, and Emanuel Atalig Matagolai, a 19-year-old Dandan resident.

David said all the five suspects are currently in custody. He said the Superior Court has imposed a $5,000 bail on each of the suspects.

Investigation conducted by the police department’s Thief Apprehension Select Coalition alleged that the five students burglarized the school’s Room J-106 last June 1. The stolen items include a laptop computer, PlayStation and DVD players, and two cellular phone units.

JROTC instructor Pedro Gloria discovered that the classroom had been burglarized when he arrived the following morning and found it in disarray.

School authorities suspected the involvement of students in the burglary. Another JROTC instructor, Ernie Torres, said that he saw one of the students picking on the classroom’s door lock before the incident happened.

That student, who is under 18 years old, allegedly admitted that he met with his cohorts at about 11pm on June 1 at a doughnut store in Susupe, where they planned the burglary, according to police detective Simon T. Manacop. The group boarded Macaranas’ pickup truck and headed toward the northern gate of MHS, from where they entered the school premises by climbing through the fence.

Macaranas confessed to the offenses in his statement to police and corroborated the narration of the other student.

Earlier this month, operatives also nabbed three teenage boys who allegedly set fire to a Kagman High School classroom on the night of May 28.

The DPS spokesman did not disclose the identities of the suspects, who are all juveniles. But he described the age of two suspects and another one as 15 and 16, respectively. The suspects allegedly burglarized at least two classrooms.

Police are now investigating the burglary and theft at the Hopwood Junior High School, which transpired last weekend.