FOUR of the five individuals accused of strafing a group that resulted in the death of a 16-year-old Alyza Wagas and the injuries of her two male companions in Barangay Yati, Liloan town, northern Cebu, at around 4:10 a.m. last Thursday, May 9, 2024, were arrested by the police in separate locations.
According to Police Major Eric Gingoyon, chief of the Liloan Police Station, one of the suspects identified by a witness as Nilo, 18, was the first to be taken into custody in Barangay Looc, Danao City, Cebu, at 11:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Nilo identified his four other companions during an investigation at the Liloan Police Station.
After that, the Liloan police went to the other suspects' residences and apprehended the 34-year-old twins in Purok Malipayon, Immaculada, Barangay Jagobiao, Mandaue City at 2 a.m. on Friday, May 10, 2024.
A 9mm pistol with six live rounds was also recovered from their possession.
The fourth suspect identified as Mak-Mak, 21, was arrested around 4:30 a.m. on Friday, May 10, in Barangay Calero, Liloan.
The authorities are currently pursuing their fifth companion, only known as Ugoy.
In a media interview, Mak-Mak stated that he joined the Bloods gang on June 26 of last year.
He claimed that he was simply the driver during the shooting incident, with his backrider Ugoy acting as the shooter.
"Driver ra ko sir, gipugos ko nila kay kung dili ko mo drive kulatahon ko nilag five minutes, ang yawe ug motor nga XRM igo ra gihatag sa akoa," Mak-Mak said.
(I was only a driver, sir. The key and the XRM motorcycle were just given to me. They threatened to beat me for five minutes if I didn't drive).
Gingoyon claimed that the five suspects are all members of the Bloods, which is the rival of Crips gang, where the victims are reportedly members.
According to the police, Nilo became a person of interest right away after a witness identified him.
Following his arrest, Nilo was brought before the witness, and he was positively identified as one of the shooters.
The crime was thought to have been motivated by personal animosities and tension between the two groups.
Last May 4, the two groups were engaged in riots in Barangay Yati, where a member of Bloods was allegedly stabbed by Alyza's 15-year-old boyfriend.
As a result, the Bloods struck back, firing at Alyza and her companions, but her boyfriend—the intended target—escaped unharmed.
Gingoyon said that five individuals on two motorcycles arrived and opened fire at the victims, John Lloyd Intan, 18, Kyle Supatan, 17, and Alyza Wagas, 16, all from Liloan.
Wagas sustained injuries to her left and right chest, Intan to his left leg and chest, and Supatan to his back with four gunshot wounds.
The 16-year-old girl expired later at 7:30 a.m. on May 9 at the Mendero Medical Center in Mandaue City, where she was taken after the incident.
Prior to the incident, the victims were drinking in a convenience store in Barangay Maguikay, Mandaue City, but they later moved to a convenience store in Barangay Yati, where they continued drinking until 4 a.m. on May 9 and in order to stay away from their rival group.
Alyza's mother, Rose Marie, expressed gratitude for the four suspects' apprehension.
Alyza is the only girl among her four children.
Despite her daughter's stubbornness, she claimed to love her dearly.
She claimed that Alyza would always slip out of their house to go with her friends and would not listen to her advice.
She continued by saying that despite telling her daughter not to always hang out with friends, her requests were ignored.
The mother said that even after Alyza’s aunts advised her to reform because her debut was almost approaching and stop bothering her mother, the youngster only said, "I will only be until next month," as if she had a premonition.
She claimed that Alyza always went out with her lover at night and that she seemed crazy with him.
In spite of this, she wanted the murderers to rot in prison.
The four suspects are now detained at the Liloan Police Station, waiting for charges of murder and frustrated murder to be filed against them.
The recovered 9mm handgun and its ammunition will undergo ballistic analysis and the result will be compared to the empty shells that were retrieved from the crime scene. (AYB, TPT)