Manhunt on for Japanese trader’s killers

Follow-up operatives of the Western Police District (WPD) fanned out yesterday in the northern part of Metro Manila in pursuit of the armed men who robbed and killed a visiting Japanese businessman in Malate, Manila last Wednesday.

WPD-Homicide Section chief Senior Inspector Alberto Peco said they have traced the plate number of the suspects’ vehicle somewhere in the northern part of the metropolis, but quickly added it was not yet conclusive if the registered owner is involved in the crime.

"The vehicle’s plate (TBE-987) could have been stolen, but we are not leaving any stone unturned. We will pursue all possible leads in the early solution of the crime," Peco said.

At the same time, investigators are looking at several angles as the motive for the abduction and killing of Masashi Matsuura, 42, a Japanese businessman who owned a pinball-style gambling parlor in Nagoya, Japan. Before shooting down the victim, the suspects also took his wallet, passport and luggage.

WPD-Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit chief Superintendent Co Yee Co said one of the angles they are looking at is the murder-for-insurance after gathering that the slain Japanese was heavily insured.

However, Co said they have to still coordinate with the Japanese Embassy to secure all pertinent records of the victim, especially the identity of the insurance beneficiary.

"The motive could not have been just robbery. There was no need to kill the victim," said officer-on-case SPO3 William Gondranios.

Matsuura was abducted, robbed and shot dead by at least four heavily armed men in Singalong, Manila last Wednesday, barely an hour after arriving in the country through the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). He was declared dead on arrival at the Ospital ng Maynila for multiple gunshot wounds in the body.

The Japanese, together with his brother-in-law Ike Manuel, his children Nina, Ken and Yoya, and his niece Rachel Vanessa David, was on board a blue Kia Pregio van (CNZ-848) when blocked by the suspects’ vehicle along Roxas Boulevard.

Three armed men wearing jackets and bullcaps with "PNP" markings and pretending to be police officers ordered the passengers to alight and boarded the van, telling Matsuura they were checking his belongings for illegal drugs. Manuel, who was driving the van, fled.

One of the suspects handcuffed Matsuura and was forced inside the van with the children. After divesting the Japanese of his belongings, he was shot with an automatic rifle, while the suspects fled on board their get-away car at the corner of Singalong and Quirino Avenue in Malate.

Peco said the victim’s brother-in-law, who left the victim and his children after mysteriously managing to elude the armed suspects, had been released from police custody after executing his sworn statements.