Tuesday, March 11, 2008 Loots threaten to sue those who link them to killing of businessman-politico
THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will look into last Sunday’s killing of Renerio Mongaya Arrogante III in Daanbantayan.
NBI 7 Director Medardo de Lemos, in an interview yesterday, said he has assigned the case to supervising agent Jose Ermie Monsanto and agent Greg Algoso.
The two agents are scheduled to leave for Daanbantayan today for an ocular inspection of the crime scene.
De Lemos said more agents “will be assigned if so required.” He declined to comment further, citing the delicate nature of on-going investigations.
He said the agents would be calling Renerio Arrogante IV, the victim’s son, for an interview as soon as the family is ready.
In shock
He said the son, who was with the victim during the shooting, might be able to give a detailed description of the shooter.
“From what I understand, the family is still in shock,” he said.
Two slugs were recovered from Arrogante’s cadaver during an autopsy yesterday by Dr. Rene Cam, NBI medico-legal examiner.
One of the bullets was recovered in Arrogante’s back. The bullet entered via his right forearm, made an exit and possibly reentered via his right bicep and lodged into his deltoid muscle.
By the trajectory, plus the fact that Arrogante was also wounded in the left arm, Cam speculated that he might have tried to cover his head when shot.
The probable fatal shot, Cam said, was the bullet that hit the left side of Arrogante’s chest.
“And with the absence of tattooing on the gunshot wound, we can approximate that the shooter fired from a distance of more than two feet,” he said.
Cam counted a total of five entry wounds in the cadaver.
The bullet will be turned over to the NBI ballistics laboratory for analysis.
Meanwhile, Senior Supt. Vicente Loot has warned his family’s political opponents of charges if they link them to the killing.
Usual suspect
Arrogante ran for town councilor under the ticket of Augusto Corro, who went up against Mayor Sun Shimura, son of Vice Mayor Maria Luisa Loot.
“Humana ang election. This is not a free-for-all time to throw anything dirty at us,” Loot told reporters yesterday.
He said so many things have been blamed on him but with the elections over, he said he will no longer tolerate any accusations hurled against him and his family.
“We have been the usual and convenient suspect every election,” he said.
He understands, however, if police investigators will investigate them.
“I denounce what happened. But I also denounce what our opponents are saying,” he said.
While none of Arrogante’s immediate family members have issued statements blaming the Loot family, Loot said someone close to the family was quoted as saying they had no other enemies except for those in politics.
He said a reporter (not from Sun.Star Cebu) had asked them about it and quoted someone close to the family as saying they had no other enemies.
The Cebu Provincial Police Office, for its part, will continue with its investigation, even if the family wanted NBI to handle the probe.
Supt. Erson Digal, deputy provincial police director for operations, said they have yet to close in on a single lead.
Motive
“It is still under our area, so we will still conduct an investigation,” Digal said.
He said they don’t mind if the victim’s family sought help of NBI.
Senior Insp. Jovito Canlapan earlier said they will first try to identify the gunman before they can point to a motive for the killing.
Arrogante was shot near the Mainroad Square compound in Barangay Poblacion, Daanbantayan last Sunday morning.
Witnesses say they saw a man calmly walking away from the crime scene with a .45 cal. pistol and getting on-board a black Yamaha Krypton motorbike driven by a companion.
Arrogante’s son had said the gunman did not conceal his face but was not familiar to them. He believes the gunman was not from Daanbantayan, or else they would have recognized him. (KNR/MEA)
