AFP launches inquiry into possible theft from military armory

(Eagle News) — The Armed Forces of the Philippines is investigating how weapons and ammunition believed to be the property of the government were seized from suspected arms suppliers to rebels.

The AFP launched the probe after Edgardo Medel and Rosemarie Medel were nabbed by authorities for “selling” to authorities P1.2 million worth of firearms and ammunition believed to be the property of the 7th Infantry Batallion in Fort Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija.

“While we can already confirm that the captured firearms are not in our inventory, only a thorough inventory of our ammunition stocks will confirm whether there are losses in our stocks that could have fallen into the hands of gunrunners,” AFP public affairs chief Col. Noel. Detoyato said.

While he said there was a “periodic inventory and wall-to-wall counting to account for each and every cartridge,” it was possible some “unscrupulous individuals” managed to circumvent the system.

“Notwithstanding, the AFP will further enhance our strict firearms and ammunition control measures and will treat this case as a valuable lead to weed out corrupt personnel in our ranks,” he said.