Wednesday, December 19, 2007 Barrita: Trail of bodies By Eddie O. Barrita Tikdul-tikdol
POLICE operatives who were following a trail of bodies left by a gun-for-hire group may have unwittingly stumbled upon their quarry.
They never thought the arrest of Aristotle Aves and his cohorts would link the alleged frat hitman to three more unsolved murders, including President Arroyo’s political supporter and a Japanese national, in addition to the nine murders pinned on him.
Unless the police are heaping everything on Aves.
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Criminal Investigation and Detection Group 7 Director Jose Jorge Corpuz said ballistic and cross-matching tests on two .45 pistols, one seized from Aves and another turned over by Aves’ cohort Jesus Singson Jr., linked Aves to the 12 murders.
Fine police sleuthing and a modern police crime lab would surely help police solve crimes.
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Colonel Corpus said Aves’ group, which is allegedly involved in gun-for-hire activities, charges P10,000 per hit. If murder can be that cheap, we won’t be surprised if his group had more than 12 hits.
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Businessman and self-styled anti-graft crusader Cris Saavedra seeks a Senate inquiry into the surveillance cameras purchase and the Cebu International Convention Center’s construction.
“If a presidential candidate wants to win in Cebu,” he said in a letter to Senate President Manny Villar, “he or she must have these anomalous transactions investigated and send those government officials involved to jail.”
Well, Cris, that becomes an investigation in aid of election.
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Cris must have his two feet firmly planted on air.
If those officials are sent to jail, who’ll campaign for that presidential bet and make him or her win in Cebu?
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It’s beginning to look like Christmas.
Some people are now dusting off past presents while everybody wants his past forgotten and his present remembered.
What’s ironic is that we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace by giving our kids toy rockets, machine guns, warplanes and tanks.
One more thing, please remember that when we exchange gifts during Christmas, it should be reciprocal, not retaliatory.
