PERSONNEL of Police Station 2 in Bacolod City have already obtained a copy of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage installed at the parking lot of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Shrine (Redemptorist Church) in Barangay 5, where Filipino - Chinese businessman Alex Yao was killed in a shooting.
His wife, meanwhile, was injured.
Chief Inspector Ariel Pico, public information officer of Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO), said the members of the Special Investigation Task Group reviewed and discussed the CCTV footage during their case conference at the BCPO headquarters on Tuesday, February 26.
Pico, however, said the police still have difficulty in identifying the suspects because the copy is not clear.
“It needs to be enhanced so that we could have the lead to the identities of the suspects,” he added.
Based on the footage, a child who was earlier reported standing beside Yao’s vehicle waiting for “alms” was seen running away from the car when the shooting occurred.
The unidentified gunman fired several times at the driver’s seat where Yao was seated.
The door at the front passenger seat opened, where his wife, Ma. Theresa, was seated.
The gunman then fled with an unidentified companion who was waiting near the vehicle on board a motorcycle.
The faces of the assailants, who are wearing jackets and bonnets, are not clear on the footage. The shooting took place on the night of February 19.
Pico said the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group told them during the case conference that they have other witnesses.
They can also acquire other CCTV footages near the area which can help them in the investigation, he added.
Chief Superintendent John Bulalacao, regional director of Police Regional Office (PRO)-Western Visayas based in Iloilo City, earlier said that an alleged rival drug syndicate may possibly be behind the attack of Yao.
Aside from drugs, police are also eyeing that the killing might have something to do with his businesses and personal life.
For his part, Senior Superintendent Henry Biñas, officer-in-charge of BCPO, said there has been no significant development yet on the murder case of Yao as of this writing.
The case conference was more on updating the evidence that we have and will be having to solve the case, he said.
Biñas also said that they are currently doing a background check on Yao to check if they could link something to his death.
It might be business rivalry, we do not know yet. Until now investigation is ongoing, he added.
It can be recalled that Yao and his wife were about to leave the church after attending a prayer meeting, when an assailant fired at them.
Yao succumbed to three gunshot wounds while his wife was hit on her left hand.
The police earlier said they also received reports on the alleged inclusion of Yao in the previous drug’s list of President Rodrigo Duterte as a high-value target. Though, authorities have yet to see the actual list.
He was also allegedly affiliated with Cebuano businessman Peter Lim, who was earlier named a drug lord by Duterte in 2016.
The BCPO has been coordinating with other intelligence units in an effort to further investigate the alleged illegal drugs involvement of Yao.
As other information are confidential and validation of reports is still ongoing, the BCPO top official refused to elaborate more on Yao’s alleged drug links.
As of now, Biñas said they are waiting for the family’s approval to subject Yao’s cellular phone for investigation as it can probably help them trace the perpetrators and determine the motive.
Yao owned a lending and currency exchange firms, and co-owned several lending companies in Bacolod City and other parts of Negros Occidental.
He was also a cement distributor, supplying to various construction firms in the province and other parts of the country.