Policeman shot dead in Balamban another policeman hurt in separate shooting incident

CEBU, Philippines - A rookie policeman was killed and another one was injured in two separate shooting incidents in the province over the weekend.

Police Officer I Romel Ruben Paping, 32, assigned at the Regional Public Safety Battalion in Sibonga was declared dead an hour after he was rushed to Toledo District Hospital because of multiple gunshot wounds in the body.

Paping was shot by unidentified gunman at 5:00 a.m. yesterday in Barangay Arpili, Balamban. He sustained three gunshot wounds in the arm and abdomen. The victim came from the house of his brother-in-law when the incident happened.

PO3 Julius Obañana said the victim’s brother-in-law told them that he heard successive burst of gunfire few minutes after Paping left. When the brother-in-law went out of the house to check, he saw Paping sprawled on the ground.

Obañana said they are tracking a certain Dwight Carmelitos whom the victim had an altercation last week. Carmelitos reportedly threatened the victim when the latter pacified a common he was involved in.

The police also learned that Carmelitos has a pending warrant of arrest for frustrated homicide.

In another shooting incident, PO2 Eduardo Librando was injured in the right leg after a suspected burglar shot him Saturday afternoon in La Beinvinida subdivision, Barangay Tungkop, Minglanilla using an improvised shotgun locally known as pugakhang.

The suspect was identified as Luwil Heramis a resident of the said subdivision. Police investigator Abelardo Bitod of the Minglanilla Police Station said that Librando and a certain Rodulfo Bardilas mauled Heramis prior to the shooting incident.

A security guard of the subdivision allegedly told Librando that Heramis is a suspect of the series of burglaries in the subdivision. Librando and Bardilas who were reportedly under the influence of liquor approached the suspect and mauled him.

The suspect ran home but later went back with his two brothers already armed with an improvised shotgun. Heramis saw Librando outside his house and shot him.

Librando was hit in the right leg and managed to return fire using his 9-millimeter service firearm but missed. The suspect immediately fled after the incident. —(FREEMAN)