Whether it was the money that they were paying the jeepney drivers or the work that they were doing to clean up some of the most dangerous gang activity in the Philippines, Andres, Devon, or Thomas knew, but they were starting to get messages about people wanting to help them, of course for a price. But the most intriguing offers were from individuals they had already worked with. Six of these men were undercover agents of the Setting Moon Agency. What was even more interesting was that three of these agents had prior experience with explosives, mostly in bomb disposal. Regardless of where and how they came by this knowledge, they were familiar with shaped charges and detonators, which is all they needed. With these six guys, they could set up three teams, each run by Devon, Thomas, or Andres. They could now take out all the remaining cells, if not in one night, certainly in two nights. The risks of discovery were greatly lessened by shortening the time it took to take out the cells. They also had to put Octavio to rest. I think he would be happy in Taguig City.
Devon, Thomas, and Andres came up with two plans, Plan A and Plan B. Plan A involved taking out the four cells in one night, and of course, Plan B involved leaving the Caloocan cell for last on the second day. Because Devon had the most experience in these lightning attacks, he was chosen to take out two cells, while Thomas and Andres would each take out the last two. Of course, Devon had the final say on whether or not he took out both cells. The Quezon City cell was the priority of the two and the second largest cell after the Manila cell. The added problem was that they were now working with untried men. There was some comfort in that Virgil Araneta, the owner of the Setting Moon Agency, vouched for each one of the “volunteers.” While it was true that they did volunteer, they were, of course, expecting some recompense for their services.
They chose Caloocan and Quezon City for the double header because they were only a 30-minute drive away from each other. Because Devon had two places to assault, and time was of the essence, he got the most experienced of the three Setting Moon Agency agents in handling explosives, Umed Malinao. He served for twelve years in the Home Defense Forces (formerly Special Forces), serving primarily in the specialized Demolition Unit. He then completed the remaining eight years of his 20-year tenure in the Philippine Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit before retiring from the military to join the private sector. Even though he now works full-time for Setting Moon Agency, he continues to provide consulting services to both the Philippine armed forces and various law enforcement agencies. Devon was also assigned to Alain Voillas and Raul Quijano, both veteran undercover agents with extensive experience in military and law enforcement.
Thomas and Andres were also assigned veteran agents, all with similar levels of experience, who were highly motivated and proficient in their respective areas of expertise. They all, however, shared a growing concern for the state of lawlessness that was pervading throughout the Philippines. So when they heard what Devon, Thomas, and Andres were trying to accomplish, they were eager to provide some form of assistance to the team. Even though they all volunteered to serve with the three-man team, some form of recompense was inferred. Salaries in the Philippines are, after all, appallingly poor, and any chance to supplement their finances cannot be overlooked.
Thomas’ team consisted of Eugine Esguerra with 8 years in the Philippine Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit, Stefan Espanol, and Oracle Custodio. While Andres picked up Jed Pamplona who served for 6 years in the Philippine Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit, Quasim Bernales, and Alejandro Viray,
Even though Andres no longer served with the Light Reaction Regiment (LLR), he still had contacts, so he was able to pull a few strings and reserve their hostage/rescue training facility for the next two days. This facility would allow each of the three teams to practice working together in a controlled environment. For obvious security reasons, I can’t disclose the location of this facility. By the time the two days of training were over, all three teams were working like well-oiled machines.
The two-day break from their operations not only provided much-needed practice time for the three units but also allowed Andres time to acquire the necessary equipment. You may recall that they had only acquired equipment and weapons for a three-man team; now they would need three times as much equipment. This is where Thomas was able to provide some much-needed assistance. He contacted the Vatican on his satellite phone and got the ball rolling. You may be aware that a large portion of the Filipino population is Catholic, including the government, so the Roman Catholic Church has considerable sway in the Philippines. Needless to say, the requested weapons and equipment were quickly provided. While it is true that the new weapons did not precisely match those used by the team, they were perfectly serviceable. The word going around was do not ask and do not tell. Critical assistance was being provided for the much beleaguered law enforcement force, and that was all that needed to be said. How and where the weapons came from most likely will never be known, but sometimes the precise details are better left unknown. All that was needed to be known was that the number of reported missing persons in the affected areas had dropped off substantially since Devon, Thomas, and Andres had begun their operations in the Philippines, and that was a good thing.