Thursday, August 12, 2004 Yap: Fastest gun By Januar E.Yap Meanwhile
And so I got this call one Sunday from retired cop Roy Codiñera. Have you heard what happened to me, he asked. I read it in the papers, sir, I said. A stroke following a lechon binge on his wife’s birthday.
Roy, when I interviewed him in 2001, confessed he had killed 117 criminals in the years when he was a cop. It didn’t bother him. They were anyway lawless elements that didn’t deserve to walk any minute longer on the face of the earth. Most of those killings, he said, took place in Oza-mis City, way before the Kuratong Baleleng could even pussyfoot on what many believe is probably now the R&R center for criminals.
Roy called to thank me for an old feature story I did on him. The article, he said, plays a central role in the making of a script for a movie about him. What movie, sir? Oh, so you didn’t hear, he said.
If there is going to be a movie or a book about him, Roy prefers the title, “The Fastest Gun Alive.”
His talent, he said, lies in the speed he could draw out his gun and shoot even before eagle-eyed criminals could pull a trigger. Once, he shot a criminal right in front of a church on a Sunday. Still, he didn’t mind. That is a wanted man, he told the priest, who went out of his way to ask Roy about the killing.
So what is this movie about? If you’re one familiar with the movies of Lito Lapid, the Leon Guerrero of Philippine cinema, then you’ll understand why the senator is so agog in buying Roy’s rights for the film. If my memory serves me right, it cost about P2.5M, I’m not sure. Roy said he will give me a modest cut from what he said is easy money. Though if he lets me direct the film, that’ll be even far better. I stayed quiet.
The Lito Lapid characters are usually those with terribly magnificent sleight of hand with pistols. He can shoot two people with a single shot by splitting a bullet with a knife placed at the barrel’s mouth. That gives director John Woo a run for his money.
Roy’s career as a cop is very colorful. After the call, I paid him a visit in his house. I’m a sucker for good stories, you see. I wanted to listen to what he had to say. Hold on, I’ll tell you tomorrow.
(e-mail: januariusmail@yahoo.com; or text 0927-4908875)
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