2 killed in Valenzuela street melee

Two jobless men were shot dead in a street fight past midnight yesterday in Valenzuela City.

Police identified the fatalities as Erick Cacho, 21; and Carlo Madera, 18, both residents of Sitio Kabatuhan in Barangay Gen. T. de Leon.

Senior Police Officer 2 Angeles Miranda, of the Valenzuela City police investigation unit, said that at around 12:30 a.m., a group led by suspect Fernando Bello, 24, and a rival group, which included the victims, started a brawl.

Bello, armed with a sumpak or homemade shotgun, fired upon his group’s opponents, badly wounding Cacho and Madera, Miranda said.

The victims were rushed to the Valenzuela General Hospital but they died of multiple pellet wounds while being treated.

Senior Superintendent Ranier Idio, the city police chief, ordered his men to conduct follow-up operations to arrest Bello, who will be charged with two counts of homicide, but the suspect and his group evaded the lawmen. – Pete Laude