Pastor’s widow, alleged lover to face murder raps

MANILA, Philippines - The battered wife found a lover, who took pity on her and hired a friend in the police force to eliminate her tormentor.

This, according to police probers, is the story behind the June 12 murder of champion car racer Ferdinand “Enzo” Pastor.

Police Officer 2 Edgar Angel, assigned in Pasay City, detailed the events that led him to kill Pastor, out of friendship with the mastermind and for a fee of P100,000.

The businessman who allegedly paid for the hit, Domingo “Sandy” de Guzman III, was arrested Tuesday night and will be charged along with Pastor’s wife Dahlia, who purportedly assisted in planning the crime, according to Chief Superintendent Richard Albano, director of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD).

“We have established that De Guzman and Dahlia had an affair,” said Director Benjamin Magalong, head of the Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group.

De Guzman, who operates a car shop, has denied the accusations or even knowing Angel.

A few hours after Angel led police to arrest De Guzman, Pastor’s father Tom, accompanied by a lawyer, went to QCPD headquarters at Camp Karingal to talk to the confessed triggerman.

Angel readily detailed his participation, saying De Guzman first raised the possibility of killing Pastor at a meeting in Pasay in November last year. The two have known each other for some time, with De Guzman’s ex-wife standing as godmother to Angel’s youngest child.

The two men did not reach an agreement. In January, when De Guzman raised the issue again, Angel asked who the target would be.

De Guzman supposedly said he was doing it for a friend who was often battered and would run to him after a beating.

Angel was unmoved and did not agree to the hit.

When De Guzman called him up again in February, Angel asked if the woman was the businessman’s lover. De Guzman insisted the woman was just his friend. Angel told De Guzman to bring photos of the woman as proof that she suffered regular beatings.

At their next meeting, Angel was shown photos of Dahlia with bruises on her arms and face. For the first time, De Guzman told Angel the target would be the woman’s husband, who still was not identified.

Angel finally agreed and was allegedly given P50,000 by De Guzman as downpayment. The money was quickly spent, Angel said, explaining that he was short of cash at the time.

For several months Angel did not hear from De Guzman, making him suspect that the deal was off.

But in June, he said he received a text message from De Guzman, stating: “Game na!”

De Guzman supposedly said he would provide the motorcycle and the gun to be used.

Angel was told that the target would be driving a DHL van carrying a race car. The vehicle would come from Batangas and pass through the Magallanes interchange in Makati on its way to Subic.

Between 5 and 6 p.m. on June 12, Angel went to a mall in Magallanes, where he picked up the motorcycle allegedly provided by De Guzman. A .45 caliber automatic was tucked in the motorcycle’s seat.

Angel said he was told that the driver of the van was the target. He was allegedly told that if Pastor was with his father, the older man should also be killed, with the price of the hit to be doubled: “Kung kasama yung tatay, birahin mo. Dodoblehin ko.”

The policeman trailed the van along C5 road, trying but failing to find an opportunity to carry out the hit.

He found the opportunity in Quezon City, at the intersection of Visayas and Congressional avenues.

As Pastor stopped for a red light, Angel got off his motorcycle, walked up to Pastor and opened fire.

Moments later, he rang De Guzman, saying: “Tapos na (It’s done).”

Angel said he abandoned the motorcycle under the Magallanes flyover before meeting up with De Guzman early the next day along Macapagal Boulevard, where the balance of P50,000 was supposedly paid and the murder weapon returned.