THE woman seated in the back of the car when lawyer Rex Fernandez was shot and killed is now considered a person of interest, police said Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021.
Rosinda Acot, a real estate agent, was unhurt during the attack on Aug. 26, 2021 in Banawa, Brgy. Guadalupe, Cebu City.
Police Col. Josefino Ligan, Cebu City Police Office director, said Acot has not been cooperating in the investigation. As of Wednesday, she has not contacted the Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) investigating the killing.
Ligan said a video clip showed that Acot stepped out of the car after the shooting and brought with her some items believed to be Fernandez’s personal belongings.
He said Acot may also be in possession of Fernandez’s mobile phone, which the police have not been able to locate.
He called on Acot to report to the SITG and provide information about the incident.
“As of now, we consider her a person of interest because she took with her some items, possibly including the cellphone, which are vital in the investigation,” Ligan said.
The police have secured closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage showing the shooting and a dashboard camera that may contain additional information.
Ligan also said they will interview officials of the Bamboo Bay Community despite their denial of any involvement in Fernandez’s murder.
“Yes, we need to interview them even though they have issued an official statement,” Ligan said.
Fernandez, 62, a veteran Cebuano lawyer who recently staged a hunger strike to protest his condominium dues, was in his car when he was shot dead.
The car had stopped at the corner of R. Duterte St. and Good Shepherd Road in Banawa when a lone gunman, who was waiting at a bakeshop near the corner, calmly walked to the car and fired several shots through the front passenger window.
Fernandez, who was on the front passenger seat, died instantaneously. His driver was wounded while Acot, who was seated in the back, was unhurt.
The gunman then briskly walked away and hopped on a motorcycle driven by an accomplice.
Fernandez was the eighth lawyer killed in Cebu since 2016. (AYB, LMY)