CAUGHT Police drag Marlon Inanoria inside a police car after he held hostage five Ceres liner employees for more than one hour. (Photo by Tara Yap)

Ex-Ceres man held captive 5 employees

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

A DISMISSED conductor of the Ceres Bus Liner held hostage 5 employees of the liner in Jaro, Iloilo City 8am Monday.

Marlon Inanoria, a native of Brgy. Baliuagan, San Enrique, Negros Occidental, managed to sneak inside the Ceres remittance compound at Brgy. Buhang, Jaro by wearing his old uniform and boarded a Ceres bus from Roxas City.

Upon entering the compound, Inanoria drew a caliber .38 revolver and a homemade 12-gauge pistol and went straight to the cashier’s office.

Cashier Ludivina Guerra said she heard somebody shout that the armed Inanoria was approaching their office. She ran towards the door to lock it but the suspect was already there and pointed his guns at her.

Security guards and other Ceres employees were taken by surprise by Inanoria’s presence and were unable to accost him.

Aside from Guerra, Inanoria also held hostage cashier Lina Celiz, tabulators Mary Rose Quisil and Eva Viera and revisor Allen Beraguas.

Members of the Jaro PNP, Iloilo City Mobile Group (ICMG), Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT), Iloilo City Crisis Management Center, Regional Intelligence Division responded to scene and surrounded the cashier’s office.

The hostage scene is an old Ceres bus refurbished with office cubicles and tables. This is where conductors remit their collections for the day.

After 30 minutes of negotiations, Inanoria released Celiz and Quisil who were fainting from their ordeal. Guerra, Viera and Beraguas remained inside the office.

Inanoria then demanded a bus and a driver that will take him away from the compound.

Police tried to buy time as SWAT and ICMG members tried to sneak inside the office through the backdoor. A sniper was also seen setting up a rifle at the rear portion of the office.

The suspect later requested water for the hostages who were also fainting because of the situation.

Unknown to Inanoria, it was a ploy to distract him and give the other hostages time and chance to run out of the office.

When a Ceres conductor handed the water to Inanoria, the three remaining hostages ran out and shouted that he was alone inside the office.

Armed police surrounded the hostage scene and told Inanoria to surrender but he refused.

Major Lowen Gil Marquez of the AFP Civil Service Relations Service then went up inside the office to negotiate Inanoria’s surrender.

Marquez said he showed his AFP identification to Inanoria to gain his confidence because the suspect’s brother is an Army member.

The AFP official also offered to shake the hand of the suspect to gain his confidence. When the suspect offered his hand, Marquez wrestled him and grabbed his guns.

Police officers helped Marquez and handcuffed the suspect. Other officers swept the area for explosives after it was reported that the suspect had grenades. But no grenade was found in the area.

 

At the Jaro police station, Inanoria said he only wanted to get back at their supervisor, a certain Juanillo for sacking him along with 61 other conductors.

Inanoria was also implicated in an alleged “holdup me” case in Jaro which he denied. A photograph of Inanoria is displayed in the gates of the Ceres remittance center with the words “Wanted.”

“I am angry because they sacked me despite my good performance. It is not only me who is disgruntled because many more are angry at the management,” he said.

Guerra said Inanoria planned to rob them because he asked for the keys to the vault. The cashier said there was cash inside the vault but she did not reveal the total amount.