Man loses head for bragging

CEBU, Philippines - Braggarts beware, you may keep the bragging rights but you might lose your head. 

A man was allegedly beheaded by his friends for being too much of a braggart in sitio Kalumboyam, barangay Buhisan, Cebu City, early morning yesterday.

The fatality was identified as Jun Otum Ngoho, 23, an employee of Debrey Design-Parian Branch, and a resident of the said place.

Celso Canillo, 37, a neighbor of the victim, told police he was walking on his way home from his work as a laborer of the Pasil fish port yesterday morning around 6 a.m. when he found the victim’s headless body.

He then went to his cousin, Elet Divino, who in turn called the barangay tanods who called for police assistance.

Suspects Richie Subkay, 21, of Pagadian City and a 16-year-old boy surrendered to the Punta Princesa police station past shortly past noon yesterday.

Subkay admitted beheading the victim with just a knife, but police doubt he would have been able to do that with just that weapon. He also did not surrender the knife he allegedly used.

Shirley Autor, 22, told police that at about 1 a.m. yesterday, she was awakened by the minor who was together with the victim and Subkay and they bought from her sari-sari store a bottle of rum and a pouch of concentrated iced tea. The three then allegedly sat and drank outside her store.

At the height of their drinking, Autor allegedly heard the three plan to go to a benefit dance at sitio Punso of the same barangay.

There was nothing heard of the three until the two suspects surrendered to the police almost 12 hours later.

Investigators said on their way to the benefit dance, the suspects and the victim, all already drunk, were allegedly trying to one-up each other on who was among them was the bravest.

The victim eventually got on the nerves of the other two and they killed him.

Police found the lifeless body of the victim was lying prone and his head about 15 meters away.

Police recovered a pair of green rubber slippers, another pair of black rubber slippers, and a half-empty bottle of rum nearby. The area was estimated to be about 50 meters away from Autor’s store. — Niña G. Sumacot/BRP (THE FREEMAN)