Suspect in AVON guard’s shooting falls

CEBU, Philippines - The Talisay City police have arrested a man tagged as one of the suspects in the killing of a security guard of an Avon branch in Talisay City last Thursday.

Talisay City police chief, Superintendent Reycel Carmelo Dayon, said they arrested Sisinio Merced, 55, with the help of a tip from an informant. Merced was arrested around 3 p.m. in Sitio Kilawan, Barangay Cansojong.

Dayon admitted being surprised that the suspect is from Talisay, considering their earlier theory that the suspects might have come from outside the city.

Dayon said Merced fits the description of the man seen in the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage from the establishment.

The witness also identified Merced positively through a photo the police took of him after the arrest. The witness said he was just two meters away when the suspects shot and killed security guard Ramel Bono.

“Maka-ingon gyud ko nga siya g’yud kay nag-atubang man mi’ng duha…siya ang usa sa mipusil (I can say that he shot the victim because we were facing each other),” the witness said.

“Ang mipatay iyang kauban nga nag-jacket, nagkawo, nag t-shirt ug short (His companion who was wearing a jacket, ball cap, t-shirt and shorts was the one who killed the guard), the witness added.

Merced, in an interview, denied the allegations.

He also denied being the man in the CCTV footage, saying the person simply resembles him.

He said he can present witnesses who can vouch that he was at his house in Kilawan, Cansojong, Talisay City on the day of the incident.

“Mora, pwede lagi mora, pero di na ako, maka-prove man ko nga wala ko diha. Maka-prove man ko nga wala ko diha ana’ng panahona (It looks like me but that’s not me because I wasn’t there. I can prove that I wasn’t there when it happened),” he said  

Cebu Provincial Police Office director Noel Gillamac commended the Talisay police for the arrest. Even if the incident happened five days ago, a paraffin test is still necessary to check traces of gun powder on the suspect.

Dayon said they have already identified and are now pursuing Merced’s cohort. - /JMO (FREEMAN)