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Saturday, January 14, 2006
Mayor of La Paz, Abra assassinated
By Ernie N. Olson Jr.
BAGUIO CITY -- A young mayor of Abra was shot dead while watching a basketball game in the town plaza early Friday evening.
Chief Superintendent Leonardo Dionisio, director of the Police Regional Office in the Cordillera, identified the slain victim as La Paz Mayor Ysrael Mark Bernos.
A still unidentified gunman at around 6:30 p.m. shot Bernos in the head Friday.
Although political rivalry is suspected due to the mayor's outspoken stand against other officials in Abra Province, investigators said they still have to look at other angles as well to ascertain the real motive in the slay.
The killing of Bernos happened just as police filed a number of murder charges against an Abra village chief after he was identified as the person behind the massacre of four people and the wounding of one other in Tayum, Abra on Monday night.
Dionisio named the alleged assailant as George Reyes alias Ikkis, chief of the barangay of Patucannay, Bangued, Abra.
The four fatalities were named in an earlier report as Esterio Seguerra, 45, married; Delio Masalay Seguerra, 24; Tamil Seguerra, 18; and Rey Aglipay, 39.
A fifth victim, who only sustained gunshot wounds in the abdomen, was identified as Lorenzo Taeza Alvaro, 46.
Initial investigation disclosed that Reyes allegedly fired at the four victims using an M16 rifle while they were in the house of Esterio Seguerra in Gaddan, Tayum, Abra at around 8 p.m. of January 9.
Afterwards, he reportedly went to the house of Alvaro and also shot the latter but only wounded him in the abdomen. The suspect fled after the incident.
"Four murder charges and a separate frustrated murder charge was filed against Reyes as a result of these shootings," Sun.Star was told Thursday night.
Dionisio said police are hunting down the suspect.
He explained that although investigators already knew the probable motive in the massacre, this was still being kept under wraps so as not to prejudice the lives and safety of witnesses.
The Cordillera police recently initiated the "Three-Concentric-Ring" strategy in setting up checkpoints and chokepoints to more efficiently and effectively address the operations of private armed groups in Abra.
The first ring covers the provincial capital of Bangued, the second ring covers its neighboring municipalities, and the third ring covers Abra's hinterlands.
Additionally, the "Bangued Shield" was also activated. This strategy involves four major maneuvers, namely: manhunts, which encompass the conduct of checkpoints, chokepoints and dragnets; legal offensives, which include the identification of suspects and the filing of cases against them; Oplan Bakal, an intensive campaign against loose firearms and unauthorized holders of guns; and the persuasive approach, which incorporates extensive and regular dialogs with political leaders there. (Sun.Star Baguio/Sunnex)
(January 14, 2006 issue)
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