2 men nabbed for gun, drugs, linked in Lapu-Lapu strafing

TWO men believed to have links with Demetrio Malingin, one of the three suspects in the strafing of a house in Barangay Mactan, Lapu-Lapu City, were arrested last Friday night.

The police recovered a .45 caliber pistol and six small sachets of shabu from Cyril Zamora, 28, and another four sachets from Rogie Dilao, 22.

At 6 p.m. last Friday, Chief Insp. Conrad Manatad received a text message from a concerned citizen that reported about two suspicious men seen near the house of Jerry Aying, 44.

Prima Aying, Jerry’s 42-year-old wife, was killed when three men fired at their house last Thursday dawn. Jerry identified the suspects as brothers Demetrio, Jay and Deo Malingin.

Police presence

The Aying family has requested the presence of police officers near their house for fear of another attack.

Zamora and Dilao, both residents of Barangay Ermita, Cebu City, denied they have connections with Demetrio, who is rumored to be a drug lord.

They told the police they were in Mactan to look for a woman. The woman, the police later learned, is Demetrio’s girlfriend.

Zamora and Dilao are detained at the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office. Complaints will be filed against them tomorrow.

Jerry’s wife died right away after she was hit in the head at around 3 a.m. last Thursday.

Before the shooting, Jerry said, he heard Demetrio called out his name outside their house.

Jerry and his five children were not hurt in the attack.

Jerry said Demetrio had threatened to kill him after he filed murder charges against him over the killing of Roy Aying last November.

The police believed that the murder of Jerry’s younger brother was related to the illegal drug trade.

Demetrio went into hiding after the court issued an arrest warrant against him last February.

Manatad said they are not ruling out a drug dispute as the reason of last Thursday’s attack.