Vigilante assault?: 1 dead, 2 wounded in Camputhaw shooting

One died and two others were wounded when attacked by motorcycle-riding men, in what was later described as a vigilante-style shooting at sitio Lower Purok 3 in barangay Camputhaw Wednesday afternoon.

The slain victim was identified as 26-year-old Nestor Bejec, while those who survived but wounded were John Mervin Dinglasa, 38, and Dario Beñalon, 36-all residents of the place.

Homicide investigators, led by SPO2 Alex Dacua, said the victims were at first playing "hantak," a kind of game where players flip coins and place bets.

A while after, two unidentified men wearing helmets arrived and parked their yellow motorcycle at the bridge along Escario Street near where the game was held. They then approached and fired several shots at the three victims, returned to their motorcycle and sped off.

Bejec suffered gunshot wounds on his head, face, neck and chest. He was rushed to the Perpetual Succour Hospital but failed to reach there alive.

Dinglasa and Beñalon were each hit on the right shoulder and knee and were taken to the Cebu City Medical Center.

Police recovered from the scene three spent shells of a .45-caliber pistol and a deformed slug of yet undetermined caliber. A deformed fragment was also taken out of Beñalon's wound and turned over to the homicide police.

Dacua said it is still too early yet to tag the assailants as vigilantes, but he theorized that Bejec was the main target of the assault based on the shots that hit the victim. - Norvie S. Misa.