Parañaque cops pursue victim, fail to catch robber

MANILA, Philippines - Policemen chased a businessman fleeing from a robber who shot him in Parañaque City yesterday morning.

City police chief Senior Superintendent Nestor Pastoral scolded his men for failing to arrest the man who tried to rob businessman Edwin Esguerra. What angered Pastoral further was that the robber was able to escape the crime scene on foot.

“They thought the suspect was Esguerra because he was speeding off the scene,” he told The STAR over the phone. “I am so angry because they did not bother to check their facts.”

Senior Police Officer 1 Rudy Dimson said Esguerra, 42, had just withdrawn P10,000 from a bank at about 8:50 a.m. when an armed man approached him while he was in his Mitsubishi Pajero.

Instead of heeding the robber’s demand, Esguerra sped off, prompting the robber to shoot at his car.

The bank alerted the police, who sent a police team within a few minutes.

The team pursued Esguerra all the way to the Parañaque Medical Doctors Hospital, where he sought treatment for a bullet wound in the elbow.