‘Cop killer’ nabbed

The man who fatally shot a Marikina policeman in Pasig last Monday was arrested yesterday in Antipolo City.

Randy Galla, 21, was caught while allegedly trying to buy the illegal drug shabu from a drug dealer in Barangay San Isidro, Antipolo. He was the third suspect rounded up for the death of PO3 Victor Santiago.

Inspector Rodante Arcigal of the Pasig City police said Galla is believed to have been the one who shot Santiago in the chest as he was chasing him after a jeepney holdup near the boundary of Marikina and Pasig last Monday.

"We have witnesses who claim they heard him (Galla) boast that he shot Santiago at close range while he was about to grab him," he said.

Arcigal added that Galla allegedly belongs to a gang of young robbers in Antipolo. The police have caught two other suspected members of the group, Vicente Roncales, 26, and Eduardo Lamera, 28. Police are looking for four others believed to be now in hiding.

Superintendent John Sosito, chief of the Pasig City police, is urging holdup victims to identify the arrested suspects so additional charges can be filed against them. – Non Alquitran