Police tag killer in Delgado murder

Manila police investigators finally identified yesterday the prime suspect in the six-day-old slaying of a scion of a prominent clan in Malate, Manila.

"Our principal witness has finally identified one of the suspects who stabbed to death Federico Delgado through several photos shown to her," Chief Inspector Alejandro Yanquiling Jr., chief of the Manila Police District’s homicide section, told The STAR.

The police have under its protective custody Annalisa Peseco, 20, reportedly the girlfriend of the 51-year-old victim who was with Delgado at the time of the murder.

Delgado was stabbed dead late Saturday on the fourth floor of the family-owned Mayflower Building, located at the corner of Leon Guinto and Estrada streets in Malate.

Peseco told police that she managed to get a good look at one of the suspects when he removed his bonnet while opening Delgado’s safety vault, according to Yanquiling.

However, Yanquiling requested that the suspect’s identity be temporarily withheld to avoid jeopardizing the ongoing police manhunt.

The manhunt has already taken operatives to an exclusive city hospital and several entertainment spots in a southern city of Metro Manila, but the suspect proved elusive.

"We are optimistic that we can arrest him within the week. We have a very strong solid case against him," Yanquiling said. He declined to give other details until the suspect is brought in.

At the same time, Yanquiling also absolved Federico’s brother, Franco, in the murder case. During the initial investigation, the only lead the police had was the name "Franco," which was written with the victim’s own blood on the wall. Investigators earlier believed that it was written by Delgado shortly before he died.

However, Yanquiling said the writing was too clear and legible to be written by a dying person. "We theorized that only a person in his proper state of mind could have done the writing to mislead investigators. Besides, the victim’s body was too far from the wall," he added.

Delgado reportedly arrived at his building on Saturday night accompanied by Peseco. Upon opening his room at the fourth floor of the building, two masked men attacked Delgado with knives.

Peseco shouted for help, prompting the suspects to hit her on the head with a hard object. She lost consciousness and her hands were tied behind her back with nylon straw and a necktie. The suspects then opened the victim’s safety vault and took away cash, jewelry and important documents.

Peseco regained consciousness when the suspects left and managed to untie herself. She immediately reported the incident to the police.