THE military unit linked to the abduction of activist Jonas Joseph Burgos might be trying to get off the hook by saying the license plate seen in the suspect’s getaway vehicle was stolen from its custody, but it could still be held liable under forestry laws for the loss of evidence in an illegal logging case.

An official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources yesterday said the loss of plate TAB 194 under the custody of the Army’s 56th Infantry Battalion should be attributed to the soldiers’ apparent neglect of duty.

Sosio Quintana, DENR-Central Luzon regional technical director for forestry, said the 56th IB has "no excuse" for the loss of the plate as the area where the vehicle was impounded is "under strict security."

Quintana is the head of the team formed by DENR-Central Luzon executive director Regidor de Leon to check on the status of the vehicle impounded at the headquarters of the 56th IB in Norzagaray in Bulacan.

A locally assembled XLT jeep with license plate TAB 194 was impounded at the 56th IB headquarters in June last year after it f4igured in an anti-illegal logging apprehension.

The plate was seen by witnesses on a maroon Toyota Revo into which Burgos was shoved after being snatched from a restaurant at the Ever Gotesco Mall in Quezon City on April 28.

Television footage showed that the XLT jeep was still at the 56th IB headquarters, with the Army saying the plate was stolen by illegal settlers nearby.

Quintana insisted the Army is "responsible for the loss of any part (of any vehicle under its custody)."

Quintana explained that the impounded vehicle, including its license plate, are "material evidence to be used in court" as its owner, Mauro Mudlong, is now facing an illegal logging case at a Malolos court.

Maj. Gen. Juanito Gomez, commander of the Army’s 7th Infantry Division, to which the 56th belongs, said the headquarters of the 56th IB is not actually a camp but a civilian property leased to the military for one sack of rice a month. He said the battalion has been staying in the property since 2002.

He also said the license plate was stolen between November and March when the battalion was out of the province for training, bolstering the military’s position that it had nothing do with Burgos’ abduction. Only a few soldiers were left to provide security, he said.

It was not clear if these have been interviewed by Army and AFP Provost Marshal investigators.

Wilfredo Marbella, internal deputy secretary general of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, called as a "pathetic excuse" the line of the military that the plate was stolen.

"Would any person in his right mind try to steal a plate of a vehicle inside a military establishment?" he said.