TWO men were arrested by operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation-Central Visayas (NBI 7) for their alleged involvement in the killing of a 17-year-old student back in 2017.

On Thursday, March 31, 2022, NBI 7 operatives presented Victor Abejo Ponce, 22, and his cousin, Raymond Millorna Ponce, 25, both residents of Sitio Bunga, Barangay Agus in Lapu- Lapu City on Tuesday, March 29, 2022.

The two men were arrested for their involvement in the murder of Richard Caravana Jr.

Caravana, a resident of Barangay Gabi, Cordova town, was stabbed to death on Jan. 1, 2017 in Sitio Bunga, Barangay Agus.

The suspects then buried Caravana’s body in a knee-deep pit in a secluded area in Sitio Bunga.

NBI 7 supervising agent Arnel Pura said the two men were arrested based on an arrest warrant issued against them by the Regional Trial Court Branch 69 in Lapu-Lapu City.

Victor immediately surrendered to authorities when he was presented with the arrest warrant.

Raymond, however, fled to San Remigio. He eventually surrendered to authorities after Victor’s mother convinced him to do so the next day.

Both suspects admitted they were afraid to surrender thinking that Markjun Ponce, the lead suspect of the crime, would retaliate against them.

Markjun is currently detained at the Lapu-Lapu City Jail for a separate murder case.

The suspects also claimed that Caravana’s murder was purely Markjun’s initiative and that they were just there to help him as he is their cousin.