Category: Philippine Star

With its many characters and overlapping storylines, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ can be a lot to keep track of onstage.

Four lovers fall in and out of love, fairies meddle in their affairs, and a group of amateur actors attempts to stage a play of their own. The ingredients are there for comedy, but bringing all that chaos together – and making it feel clear and funny – is another matter.

That makes Repertory Philippines’ return to Shakespeare an interesting one. The company last staged Shakespeare’s work in 2008 with “Hamlet,” making “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” its first Shakespeare production in 18 years. Directed by Jeremy Domingo, the production stays largely faithful to the original text, aiming to bring out Shakespeare’s wit, double entendres and sarcasm.

At first, Rep’s staging of Bard’s comedy feels very much by the book. The verses are intact, the English retains its Shakespearean formality, to the point that the commitment to the original language can occasionally make the wit harder to catch. Eventually, though, the production finds its footing, slipping in a few playful choices that catch you off guard while keeping the classic at its center.

The most immediate example comes through the music. Familiar songs occasionally replace more expected musical cues, with ‘Dancing in the Moonlight,’ or ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ emerging amid Shakespeare’s dialogue. These work as small comic winks without turning Midsummer into a musical. The four young Athenian lovers get a similar treatment. Hermia, Lysander, Helena and Demetrius look less like figures from a classical comedy and more like young people who might have wandered in from Poblacion or BGC. Their contemporary styling makes their romantic mess feel familiar.

The performances are where the production’s comedy comes most clearly into focus.

Joey Cosio-Mercado’s Puck is an immediate scene-stealer, bringing mischief and physical comedy to the fairy responsible for much of the chaos. His slightly strange, almost shroom-like look suits the character, while his quirky delivery and Puck-isms give him a playful independence.

He follows Oberon’s commands, but always seems to find his own way of doing so – at times visibly disgruntled, which adds another layer to his otherwise mischievous character. There is something fitting about the character who gets to observe all this chaos and declare, in Shakespeare’s own words, ‘What fools these mortals be!’

That chaos reaches one of its funniest stretches when Puck’s mistake with the love potion makes Lysander fall for Helena. Luis Marcelo makes the sudden shift in Lysander’s affections particularly funny, fully committing to his new love as if Hermia had never existed. His reactions help the absurdity of the lovers’ mix-up land.

Meanwhile, the fairy world has its own share of drama. Randy Villarama’s Oberon and Lesley Leveriza Lina’s Titania bring temper and mischief to the quarrelling fairy couple, with their experience showing in the confidence and control they bring to the language.

Tristan Bite makes the most of Bottom’s ridiculousness, while the Mechanicals deliver the comedy built into their material. Their performances give these characters the full comic treatment they call for, making them one of the production’s most dependable sources of laughs.

The direction also finds ways to keep the stage in motion. The staircase at the center of the set becomes a useful playground for the four lovers, giving their chase, quarrels and shifting affections more physicality. Their constant running up and down the steps adds energy to scenes that could otherwise become long stretches of dialogue, while giving the romantic chaos a sense of movement.

If there is a drawback, it is that the play’s different worlds can sometimes feel less distinct. The Athenians, fairies and Mechanicals occupy different parts of the story, but the reliance on projected visuals does not always give those spaces a strong enough visual identity. In a play built around the contrast between the ordered world of Athens and the unruly forest, a clearer visual distinction could have sharpened the production’s sense of place.

Still, REP’s staging shows it doesn’t need to reinvent Shakespeare to make “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” feel alive. Its small contemporary touches give the old text room to surprise without losing what makes it a classic. And if, as Puck says, the shadows have been offended by a few unexpected pop hits along the way, perhaps they can forgive REP for finding new ways to let an old comedy have a little fun today.

Repertory Philippines’ staging of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” runs until September 27 at Saint Cecilia’s Hall in St. Scholastica’s College, Manila.

The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) has appealed to various information and communications technology (ICT) and hacking communities to collaborate with the government in protecting Filipino youth from the dangers of the dark web and preventing further tragic incidents.

In a DZBB interview on Sunday, September 20, CICC Executive Director Undersecretary Renato Paraiso acknowledged that the government has limitations in its current capabilities and urged tech-savvy individuals to step forward and help bridge these gaps.

“Sa ating mga kapatid, sa ating mga kasamahan, sa ating mga kaibigan sa mga iba’t-ibang mga ICT communities, hacking communities, computer forums, kung may alam kayo or may access dito, mag-come forward kayo,” Paraiso said.

(To our brothers and sisters, to our colleagues, to our friends in various ICT communities, hacking communities, and computer forums, if you know anything or have access to this, please come forward.)

“Magtulong-tulong tayo para sa ating mga kabataan. Please come forward. We don’t need another incident like this, not at the expense of another child’s life,’ he added.

(Let’s help each other for the youth. Please come forward. We don’t need another incident like this, not at the expense of another child’s life.)

The appeal comes amid rising concerns over the “dark web,” a hidden layer of the internet that is inaccessible through standard web browsers and requires specialized applications, skills and knowledge to access.

According to Paraiso, these underground forums serve as platforms where hacking communities, illegal firearms sellers and anonymous groups interact

Penetrating these exclusive online spaces to monitor potential threats is highly difficult. Paraiso explained that while surface-level monitoring tools are available, deeper intelligence work is necessary because gaining the credentials and trust required to enter these forums can take years.

‘More importantly, the intelligence work that needs to go behind it kasi it takes years before you get credentials para pagkatiwalaan ka to be let inside these forums or communities, Paraiso said.

(More importantly, the intelligence work that needs to go behind it, because it takes years before you get credentials to be trusted enough to be let inside these forums or communities.)

On September 19, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said that the 14-year-old student who opened fire at a school in South Cotabato was heavily involved in activities on the ‘deep dark web.’ The shooting incident left three people dead, including the shooter.

‘Upon investigation, he was heavily into the deep dark web. He was into the deep dark web, which influenced him,’ Remulla said in a press briefing on Saturday, September 19.

‘According to his phone, he left several notes detailing his depression at tuloy-tuloy ito,’ he added.

When Victor Lee took over as president and chief executive officer of Security Bank Corp. in January, one thing about Philippine banking puzzled him: why were banks still opening branches when more customers were increasingly doing transactions through their phones?

Eight months into the job, Lee said he has come to see the branch less as a place for routine transactions and more as a venue for advice, relationships and more consequential financial decisions.

‘I joined the bank in January and I kept scratching my head, why are we still opening branches?’ Lee said during a recent media roundtable. ‘Banks still open branches and I think that’s something very unique in this market.’

Security Bank expects to end the year with around 400 branches nationwide, up from 290 in 2016, even as it continues to invest heavily in digital banking for both retail and business customers.

For Lee, the continued relevance of physical branches does not necessarily contradict the shift toward digital banking.

‘Retail transactions over the counter at the branches have reduced substantially,’ he said. ‘But, you know, customers still love the face to face relationship, that homeliness we bring them in.’

Lee said branches remain important for financial advisory and customer engagement, even as simple transactions migrate online.

He added that Security Bank might no longer expand its physical network as quickly as it did in recent years, with close to 400 branches already giving the lender broad coverage nationwide. The bank’s strategy reflects a broader shift in how lenders think about digital banking. Instead of simply replacing physical channels, Security Bank is trying to determine which interactions are better handled online and which still benefit from human advice.

Its retail digital platform currently has 1.71 million customers, about 65 percent of which are active users. The app allows clients to open accounts, transfer funds, save, invest and manage card security.

But Security Bank chief financial officer John David Yap said the objective goes beyond simply migrating customers to digital channels.

‘Scale alone is not the objective. The real opportunity for us is to turn a frequent digital interaction into a deeper financial relationship,’ Yap said. ‘An app completes a transaction. A great digital bank earns the next financial decision.’

The same approach is shaping Security Bank’s business banking strategy.

Around 40 percent of its business clients currently use the bank’s cash management services, which allow companies to manage collections, payments and other day-to-day financial transactions.

According to Yap, clients using these services maintain deposit balances that are around 150 percent higher than those that do not. Customers using more advanced cash management products show a further 32-percent improvement in deposit balances.

For banks, that matters because transaction banking can deepen a customer relationship while also bringing in more operating deposits. These are funds that naturally flow through a company’s accounts as it collects from customers, pays suppliers and manages payroll.

‘This is not simply a channel migration. When the bank becomes part of the client’s daily operating activity, the relationship changes,’ Yap said. ‘Deposit deepens, product use broadens.’

Security Bank received approval from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in June to launch an upgraded digital banking platform for corporate and micro, small and medium enterprise clients. The bank has started migrating customers to the platform and is targeting completion by year-end.

The lender also sees a continuing role for human interaction in wealth management, one of three priority businesses under its three-year strategy alongside entrepreneurial banking and corporate and institutional banking.

Lee said financial advice is becoming more personal as more Filipino households accumulate wealth and face increasingly complex investment and succession decisions.

For wealth clients, Security Bank wants digital channels to handle simple and recurring transactions while relationship managers step in when customers face bigger financial decisions.

‘A routine transaction should take seconds. A consequential decision should come with trusted advice,’ Lee said. ‘The winning wealth model will not be digital or human. It will know precisely when the customer needs each one.’

The same thinking applies to entrepreneurs.

Filipino boxers Mark ‘Rasta Mac’ Vicelles and Marlon ‘Nightmare’ Tapales carry different missions when they see action abroad on September 26.

Vicelles (21-2-1, 11 KOs) will challenge reigning International Boxing Federation (IBF) light flyweight champion Thanongsak Simsri (40-1, 35 KOs) of Thailand at the Fujisan Messe Exhibition Hall in Shizuoka, Japan.

The winner of the Vicelles-Simsri clash will be obliged to make his next title defense against Regie ‘Filipino Phenom’ Suganob of the PMI Bohol Boxing Stable.

Suganob earned a mandatory shot at the IBF 108-pound crown after scoring a fifth-round knockout over his former South African tormentor, Sivenathi Nontshinga, in their IBF title eliminator that headlined ‘Kumong Bol-anon XXVI’ last September 12 at the Bohol Wisdom School (BWS) Gymnasium in Tagbilaran City.

Tapales (41-5, 22 KOs), meanwhile, will make his featherweight debut against grizzled Thai veteran Nirun Baonok (15-33,11 KOs) in Pattaya, Thailand.

JC Manangquil, Tapales’ promoter and manager, said the fight will serve as an acid test for the former two-division world titlist as he bids to become a three-division world champion.

Tapales once held court in the World Boxing Organization (WBO) bantamweight and International Boxing Federation (IBF) super bantamweight divisions

It is rambutan season in the Philippines!

Rambutan’s main harvest season is from August to October. The red, hairy fruit that opens up to a translucent white flesh, which you bite off from a single big seed, is in great abundance at this time of the year and therefore sells at an affordable price.

You know it is in season when you see rambutan being sold in markets and supermarkets, offered by neighborhood online sellers for free delivery, and peddled by street vendors everywhere possible.

Some varieties give you a bit of work, as part of the hard covering of the seed tends to stick to the flesh and come off with it when you take a bite, but tuklapin varieties, where the sweet flesh easily separates from the seed, are now available for easy and effortless consumption.

Major harvests of rambutan during this peak season come from Southern Luzon, including Batangas and Laguna, as well as from Mindanao, Mindoro, and Palawan. A fruit native to Southeast Asia, it got its name from the Malay word that means hair because of its appearance. Its look and taste reminds you of the lychee fruit, and rightly so because they are relatives. It is also related to the fruit longan.

Rambutan offers many health benefits, so it should be a light and healthy fruit to indulge in. Rich in vitamins, minerals, and beneficial plant compounds, it is a good source of Vitamin C, which helps the body absorb dietary iron. It also serves as an antioxidant, thus protecting the body against free radicals, and its copper content assists in the proper growth and maintenance of heart, bone, and brain cells.

The fruit also contains potassium, calcium, carbohydrates, protein, and iron. It comes with a good amount of fiber, which helps promote good digestion and address the problem of constipation.

Bank officials and employees found liable for serious violations could face suspension of up to one year for a first offense and removal or disqualification for repeat offenses under the proposed rules of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

In a draft circular, the BSP sets out procedures for administrative cases, which determine liability for violations of banking laws and central bank regulations, against BSP-supervised financial institutions and their directors, trustees, officers and employees.

Stakeholders have until Sept. 25 to submit comments on the proposal.

Under the proposed schedule of non-monetary penalties, a first serious offense will carry a suspension of six months and one day to one year, with a stern warning. Disqualification can also be recommended to the BSP’s Monetary Board if warranted by the severity of the offense.

A second or subsequent serious offense will carry removal from office and/or disqualification.

Serious offenses include fraudulent acts, unsafe or unsound practices and violations of banking laws or Monetary Board directives that have or could have a material adverse impact on a financial institution, its depositors or other stakeholders.

The proposed schedule will apply to administrative proceedings covered by the draft and where the relevant BSP regulatory manuals do not already prescribe a non-monetary penalty. Fines and other sanctions can also be imposed under applicable laws and regulations.

For minor offenses, a first violation without aggravating circumstances will merit a reprimand and a warning against further violations. These offenses include procedural lapses that can be corrected immediately and acts that do not cause material harm or risk.

Second and subsequent minor offenses will carry suspension of one to six months, with possible disqualification if warranted by the severity of the offense.

However, several acts that individually qualify as minor offenses can warrant suspension even if each was committed for the first time.

The BSP will consider factors such as deliberate misconduct, concealment, fraud, significant harm and previous administrative liability in determining penalties. Good faith, cooperation, corrective measures and voluntary admission will be considered mitigating factors.

Beyond the sanctions, the draft lays down procedures for filing complaints, submitting evidence, deciding cases and seeking reconsideration or appeal.

‘These rules shall be liberally construed to promote just, inexpensive and speedy disposition of administrative cases filed with the BSP,’ the draft stated.

Proceedings will follow a simplified process without necessarily adhering to the technical rules of procedure and evidence used in courts. They will remain confidential, subject to disclosures allowed by law.

Complaints will have to be in writing, under oath and supported by evidence. Anonymous complaints would not be entertained.

Respondents will have 30 calendar days from receipt of the order and complaint to file a sworn answer. Failure to respond will allow the hearing officer to decide the case based solely on the complainant’s evidence or conduct proceedings without the respondent’s participation if necessary.

Once a case is formally submitted for resolution, the hearing officer will have 60 calendar days to render a decision. An extension will require good cause and approval from the director of the Consumer Complaints Resolution Office.

Decisions imposing only fines of up to P100,000 for each transactional violation or P30,000 per calendar day for continuing violations will be submitted to the BSP governor for approval.

Fines above those thresholds and decisions imposing non-monetary sanctions will require Monetary Board approval.

The ramming by a China Coast Guard (CCG) ship of a Philippine civilian vessel can never be justified, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.

‘There is no justification for the CCG vessel to undertake aggressive actions against a Philippine civilian law enforcement vessel and cause damage to the ship and endanger the safety of the civilian crew,’ the DFA said, referring to an incident on Friday off Palawan involving a CCG ship and the BRP Datu Magat Salamat, a law enforcement civilian vessel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

‘The Philippines emphasizes that the BFAR vessel was merely conducting routine and lawful humanitarian activities to support Filipino fisherfolk in the West Philippine Sea,’ the DFA added.

The DFA noted that the CCG vessel’s ‘illegal, coercive, aggressive and dangerous acts are inconsistent with China’s obligations under international law, including UNCLOS and the 2016 Arbitral Award, the 1972 International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) and the 1974 Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS).’

‘The Philippines calls on China to respect Philippine sovereign rights within its exclusive economic zone in accordance with UNCLOS as affirmed by the 2016 Arbitral Award, exercise restraint and avoid actions that could further escalate tensions in the region,’ the DFA said.

In Norway some years back, at a money-changing counter at the airport upon arrival, the teller turned down our group of all Filipinos. He refused to take our dollars and change them to the local currency.

The Philippines, he reminded us then, was still on the list of money launderers. We managed to finally exit the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force gray list last year.

That experience at the airport in Oslo was embarrassing but it was almost trivial compared to what our hard-working overseas Filipinos experienced when we were on the FATF gray list – the high cost of sending money to the Philippines and the increased scrutiny.

Now, seeing how much money was stolen through flood-control kickbacks, it’s surprising we even made it out of the gray list, which identifies countries that have deficiencies in fighting money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing.

I wouldn’t be surprised if our country finds itself falling back onto the FATF list again.

This is where the government, through the Anti-Money Laundering Council, must step up the fight against this crime of cleaning dirty money.

This is one way to prevent our elected politicians from stealing public funds.

The AMLC must go after those who helped launder the billions of kickbacks in maletas upon maletas.

There are many low-key individuals but are actually very instrumental in cleaning money for the famous and the infamous, sources said.

Who is this launderer?

In the business grapevine, for instance, there’s wild talk that an Indian-Filipino businessman has been laundering money for high-profile individuals.

This individual’s business has been previously linked to some lawmakers allegedly involved in the flood-control mess, but the individual has denied such ties.

In any case, the AMLC must look into how the whole systemic kickbacks scheme happened with the help of professional launderers.

Let’s take the case against former House speaker Martin Romualdez filed by the Office of the Ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan.

According to the charges, Romualdez received cash deliveries from Zaldy Co’s personnel at least 15 times from September 2022 until 2025.

This was for the monthly P2-billion quota or collection imposed by Romualdez on Co, according to the Office of the Ombudsman’s Sept. 7 briefer.

Nearly P5 billion from the amassed funds was used by Romualdez to establish various shell or dummy companies, such as Golden Pheasant Holdings Corp., Braavos Holdings OPC and Valiant Consolidated Resources Inc. Money was purportedly exchanged into other currencies with the help of Felicito Guevarra, who owns a foreign exchange company, according to the briefer.

The various shell companies served as a channel to transfer the money around and allow Romualdez to acquire other properties, companies and assets. These include a property on Tamarind Road in Forbes Park, Makati, valued at P1.5 billion, as well as the house on Narra St. in Forbes Park purchased by Trans Middle East, a corporation owned by the Romualdez family, the Office of the Ombudsman also said.

To be fair to the AMLC, it has already frozen the assets of many lawmakers, including Romualdez.

But what is also needed is to follow the money trail and go after those helping in the whole laundering process – lawyers, money changers and lenders. They are the ones who clean dirty money for politicians.

This is what the AMLC must do with fervor. Otherwise, stealing taxpayers’ money through kickbacks will be too easy for lawmakers and politicians, easier than their real jobs.

What’s next for UP Los Baños?

From a national scandal, allow me to move to campus politics.

All eyes will be on the University of the Philippines’ Board of Regents as it selects the next UP Los Baños chancellor on Sept. 24.

The choice before them extends far beyond an administrative assignment.

I am not from UPLB but I have visited the campus many times and have seen its progress.

As most of us know, UPLB is the nation’s premier engine for agricultural research, food security and climate resilience.

It houses an unmatched concentration of scientific talent charged with solving some of the country’s most pressing systemic crises.

Given the magnitude of that mandate, the defining variable in this selection process is time.

A UP chancellor serves a three-year term and in university governance, three years can pass in a flash.

When a new leader takes office, the inevitable learning curve can take months. After all, one needs to settle down, navigate the administrative maze, establish rapport and, most importantly, understand complex projects.

Most candidates bring valid qualifications but immediate readiness is equally important.

Maintaining momentum

This is where a good incumbent is ideal.

Having led UPLB for the past six years with zeal and competence, incumbent Chancellor Prof. Jose Camacho Jr. or Chancy Dong brings an established understanding of the university’s operational terrain.

During a period marked by expanding international academic partnerships and the establishment of high-level facilities such as the KOICA genetics research center, maintaining established momentum is critical.

Ideally, capitalizing on these complex global research linkages requires leadership that is already active within those networks.

As such, the Board of Regents faces a fundamental question: should UPLB press pause to allow for an administrative transition, or should it maintain its current trajectory without losing a single day?

The question comes at a critical time for our country when it is facing a food security issue and a changing climate.

The moment I received one of those long, italicized ‘share as received’ forwarded messages from Kat, my friend of many years, it actually stopped me in my tracks instead of getting scrolled past.

Somewhere in nearly everyone’s phone is a folder of forwarded messages nobody asked for; most are forgettable, but occasionally one lands with more weight than expected.

One has circulated quietly for years, describing retirement in three unsentimental stages.

From 58 to 64, your workplace begins drifting away from you no matter how influential you once were; you become, in the world’s eyes, simply ordinary again.

From 65 to 71, society itself loosens its grip; old colleagues vanish, and people at your former office may not even recognize you.

And from 72 onward, even family begins, gently and without malice, to draw back, busy with their own lives, their visits now a genuine gift instead of an obligation.

And then the message concludes with an unflinching line: eventually, even the earth is ready to let you go!

It’s blunt, occasionally clumsy in its phrasing, and still undeniably honest, which is probably why it keeps getting forwarded instead of forgotten.

But I think it’s only telling half the story, and Ecclesiastes chapter three tells us the other half.

Solomon opens that chapter with his famous poem: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing.

Read against the forwarded message, that poem suddenly sounds less like poetry and more like a diagnosis.

Every stage that message describes, the fading relevance, the thinning circle, the quieter house is simply Solomon’s ancient observation playing out in a modern inbox.

Seasons change. Influence fades. People move on, not out of cruelty, but because that’s what seasons genuinely do.

Pretending otherwise, clinging to the identity of a season that has already ended, only makes the following one more painful than it needs to be.

But right in the middle of that same chapter, Solomon writes something the forwarded message never quite gets to: ‘He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart.’

That one line changes everything about how we should read the three stages.

Here is the real reason the fading of relevance, of recognition, of company stings as deeply as it does.

It isn’t only sentimentality. It’s evidence of something eternal lodged inside us that refuses to treat any earthly season as the final word.

If we were purely creatures of this world, with nothing eternal woven into us, we could simply adjust to each stage the way a thermostat adjusts to temperature, with no ache, no resistance, just recalibration.

But we don’t recalibrate that easily, and Solomon tells us exactly why: eternity is in the heart, and nothing under the sun was ever built large enough to hold it.

That reframes the entire arc the forwarded message describes.

The fading isn’t proof that life eventually empties out. It’s proof we were never intended to find our final significance in a workplace, a social circle, or even our own family’s daily attention, genuinely good things, all of them, but never eternal ones.

They were always going to loosen their grip, precisely because they were never designed to be the place where our deepest significance lived.

This is where the message concludes. ‘Eat your favorite food with joy, do your favorite work with zeal, stay in touch with old friends because life comes only once’ is wise as far as it goes, but incomplete without what Solomon adds a few verses later: ‘eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all your toil for this is the gift of God.’

Not a consolation prize but an actual gift, received from God’s hand, meant to be enjoyed precisely because it’s temporary and ordinary, not despite that fact.

So yes, call your old friends. Enjoy your favorite meal without guilt. Do meaningful work with real enthusiasm for as long as your body allows.

That part of the message is worth keeping.

But don’t stop at ‘life comes only once, so make the most of it.’

Solomon’s deeper counsel is that life, precisely because every season eventually fades, was never meant to be where your soul finally rests.

Eternity was placed in your heart for a reason, and it was never satisfied by any stage of life to begin with, no matter how full, how influential, or how surrounded by people you once were.

The world will indeed loosen its grip on you, stage by stage, exactly as that message describes.

But Someone with an eternal grip has already made sure that goodbye was never the final word.

Every season under the sun eventually ends.

The One who placed eternity in your heart does not.

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Four suspected terrorists were killed in an encounter in Tugunan, Cotabato yesterday morning, according to the military.

The fatalities were reportedly connected to a local terror group, Dawlah Islamiya.

Reports said the fatalities and their companions opened fire at policemen and soldiers who were responding to a complaint regarding the presence of armed men in Barangay Manaulanan.

The lawmen retaliated, triggering a firefight that resulted in the death of the four suspects.

A Philippine Air Force helicopter provided aerial support to police officers and soldiers who pursued the fleeing terrorists.

Village officials said the slain suspects had been regularly collecting ‘protection money’ and rice from the residents.

The remains of the suspects were recovered at the scene of the encounter.