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Still no leads on Halili murder

Cecille Suerte Felipe - The Philippine Star
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Still no leads on Halili murder
News photographers take photos of the spot where the killer of Tanauan City Mayor Antonio Halili is believed to have taken his sniper position outside city hall. At right, image from video shows Halili on the ground after being shot.
Ernie Peñaredondo

MANILA, Philippines — Investigators are looking at three “persons of interest” who might shed light on the murder of Tanauan Mayor Antonio Halili, as police faced a blank wall yesterday in establishing a motive and finding the killer.

Chief Superintendent Edward Carranza, Calabarzon police regional director, said two of the persons of interest were linked to illegal drugs. He said the identity of the third, also a drug personality, is still being verified.

Carranza said they are exploring three angles in the murder, related to personal, work or business matters.

The bullet that pierced Halili’s heart exploded upon entry and the Philippine National Police (PNP) remains clueless on the exact type of firearm that the sniper used.

Carranza said Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) have other pieces of evidence that are now the subject of forensic examination.  

He said Halili died of hypovolemic shock or severe blood or fluid loss secondary to gunshot wound, according to the autopsy by Chief Inspector Pete Malinao.

Bullet fragments recovered from Halili’s body were also subjected to ballistic examination, showing that the slug is a 5.56 mm ammunition usually used in an M16 rifle.

“Our experts have also recovered empty shells,” Carranza said, adding that the type of firearm used in the killing could be determined.   

After Halili was shot last Monday morning, SOCO processed the crime scene and its perimeter, where they found a spot in the grassy area about 150 meters away where the gunman might have positioned himself.   

PNP chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said a special investigation task group (SITG) has been created to speed up resolution of the case.

Carranza said the SITG will conduct a reenactment to determine the line of sight of the gunman, point of entry of the bullet and the gunman’s escape route.

“There’s a road behind the grassy area where the gunman was. Investigators are also reviewing closed-circuit television footage,” he said.

‘No impunity’

There is no culture of impunity in the Philippines, and the government is ready to extend its resources to ensure that victims and their families get justice.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. assured the public that the government will not take sitting down the brazen attack on Halili.

“We cannot sanction these types of killing. This happened in broad daylight, obviously utilizing a very skilled sharp shooter,” Roque said yesterday in an interview with CNN Philippines.

“What we can assure you is that we are discharging the state obligation for every murder. We will investigate and accord the victims adequate domestic remedy,” Roque added at a regular press briefing in Malacañang.

Roque, however, did not provide details on Duterte’s statement that Halili may have been killed due to his involvement in illegal drugs.

“I’m sure that’s a matter that the President will read about, but I can only quote what he said: it’s a ‘suspicion,’” the spokesman added.

Roque said the public should allow police investigators to gather evidence about Halili’s murder, which some see as a highly sophisticated assassination.

“The official statement of the Palace, despite the suspicion of the President, is that we are alarmed because killings of this nature should not be happening,” he said.

Roque could not react to Rep. Ruffy Biazon’s observation that only a highly skilled gunman can carry out a “one-shot-one-kill operation.”

“But we are alarmed that it was in broad daylight and in such a public manner,” he said.

Following Duterte’s suspicion that the mayor’s killing could be drug-related, Roque said no stone would be left unturned in the probe.

NBI steps in

As this developed, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has stepped into the probe on the killing of Halili. 

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra confirmed that NBI agents have been sent to Tanauan yesterday and started a parallel fact-finding investigation.

“As I stated earlier, we are ready to assist the police in solving this case. The NBI has picked up the cue from there,” he revealed in a text message.

The Department of Justice chief said he would discuss the case further with NBI Director Dante Gierran.

A team of agents went to Tanauan in Batangas and met with several city hall officials to gather information in a bid to pinpoint the killer believed to be a sniper and determine the motive behind the killing.

Probers said they would look into the possibility that the killing was related to the illegal drug trade, as suggested by President Duterte.

 “Every member of the probe team has specific tasks and assignments,” PNP Region 4-A spokesperson Superintendent Chitadel Gaoiran said.

Allegations of human rights violations will not justify the killing of Halili, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said.

CHR executive director Jacqueline de Guia, a former regional director who investigated allegations of human rights violations against Halili, condemned the killing of the local official known for parading drug suspects in the streets.

“The commission condemns the brazen killing of (Halili),” she said in a statement.

“While (Halili) was the subject of several investigations by the commission, no person or official, even an alleged perpetrator, must be deprived of their right to life and due process,” she added.

De Guia said their regional office in Southern Tagalog will initiate its independent fact-finding investigation in the killing of Halili.

A quick response team was dispatched by the regional office to the crime scene following the incident, she added.

Sniper on the loose

Halili was not the first killed in the province by a sniper, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said yesterday.

Recto noted that prior to Halili, Balete Mayor Joven Hidalgo was shot by unidentified assailants firing from a van parked some distance away as the local chief executive was watching a basketball game.

In September last year, Ruben Dimacuha, uncle of Batangas City Mayor Beverley Dimacuha-Mariño and brother of former Batangas City mayor Eddie Dimacuha, was also killed by an assailant firing from a distance, the senator said.

Recto hails from Batangas and his wife, former governor Vilma Santos-Recto, is now a representative of the sixth congressional district of the province. He was among the first to debunk reports that Halili was involved in illegal drugs.

“I know (Halili) was against drug use and criminality in (Tanauan). In a short period of time, Tanauan became more peaceful and prosperous. He did a good job as mayor,” he said.

“There’s a sniper on the loose in Batangas. (Halili) was the latest politician in the province felled by a marksman’s bullet,” Recto said last Monday.

Opposition Sen. Leila de Lima blamed Duterte for Halili’s killing, with the former’s “goading” of authorities to kill suspected criminals.

“Duterte may not have fired the gun that killed (Halili), but he most certainly murdered him with his words,” De Lima said.

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, also a critic of Duterte, said a culture of violence now pervades the country.

“For someone who promised to restore peace and order in our country in the campaign, it is ironic for a lot of people that Duterte has actually turned the Philippines into the murder capital of Asia,” Trillanes said. – With Christina Mendez, Edu Punay, Ed Amoroso, Janvic Mateo, Rey Galupo, Paolo Romero

ANTONIO HALILI

MURDER

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