A POLICEMAN, who went absent without leave (Awol), was killed together with his cousin by two unknown gunmen inside a subdivision in Barangay Estaca, Compostela at 5:50 a.m. yesterday.
SPO1 Derrick Inot, desk officer of the Compostela Police Station, told Sun.Star Cebu that the gunmen made sure the victims died.
“They really intended to kill because they barged into the house,” he said in Cebuano.
Relieved from post
PO3 Antonio Iboña was inside while his cousin Cesar Belacho was outside feeding his fighting cocks, when two gunmen wearing hooded jackets and masks shot them several times.
Iboña had been assigned to the City Intelligence Branch (CIB) of the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office before he went Awol.
According to the CIB, Iboña had long been relieved from his post. “It has been years,” PO2 Jovel Tejana said in Cebuano.
Inot said that the gunmen shot Belacho first before shooting Iboña.
The attackers fled on board a motorcycle.
Belacho was an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who recently arrived from Saudi Arabia, the desk officer said.
Checking messages
“They were comfortably-off,” Inot said in Cebuano.
The victims succumbed to multiple gunshot wounds.
Seven empty shells from a .45 pistol, nine empty shells from a .40 pistol and four dud bullets were recovered from the scene.
Police are still investigating the motive for the shooting, as Belacho did not have a police record.
They are also checking messages in the victims’ cellular phones.
A close-circuit television camera caught the attackers fleeing from the scene heading for the national highway.