THE Albuera municipal police, in coordination with the Special Weapons and Tactics team, has launched a manhunt for the gunman in the shooting of self-confessed drug lord and Albuera, Leyte mayoralty candidate Kerwin Espinosa.
In a statement Friday, April 11, 2025 the Police Regional Office (PRO) 8 (Eastern Visayas) said they are doing everything to “determine the motive and ensure that justice is served.”
“PRO-8 assures the public that all efforts are being exerted to maintain peace and security, especially during the election period. We urge anyone with information to come forward and coordinate with authorities,” it said.
Espinosa, who is running against incumbent Mayor Sixto Dela Victoria and Vince Rama, the brother-in-law of Ormoc City Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez, was seriously wounded after an unidentified gunman shot him while campaigning inside a gymnasium in Tinag-an village at about 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 10.
Police said while the victim was sitting and waiting for his turn to speak, the gunman, who was hiding on the stage ceiling, shot him from behind.
Also injured were Espinosa’s sister Mariel Espinosa Marinay, who is running for vice mayor, and a girl. The victims were immediately assisted by their supporters and transported through private vehicles to a hospital in Ormoc City.
In a video message, Espinosa, who was released from jail in 2023 after the Regional Trial Court in Baybay City junked the drug-related case against him for lack of evidence, said the incident would not affect his determination to join the mayoralty race “to continue his father’s plan and serve the people.”
Former president Rodrigo Duterte accused Kerwin and his father, former Albuera mayor Roland Espinosa, of their involvement in the narcotics trade after a police raid that found P11 million worth of shabu near the family’s residence in Albuera.
The older Espinosa surrendered in mid-2016 amid drug charges but was later shot dead inside his jail cell in Baybay City. / PNA