2 shot dead in QC, revenge eyed

Manila, Philippines - A man and a 17-year-old boy were gunned down by unidentified attackers in Quezon City yesterday morning.

Rodel Acero, 20, and the boy, identified only as “Padilla,” were standing in front of a junkshop along Litex Road at past 9 a.m. when two armed attackers walked by and shot at them, then walked away.

“There were allegations by residents in the area that the victims were into robbery and may have been there probably waiting for another target,” Superintendent Ronnie Montejo, commander of the Quezon City Police District Station 6, said.

He said they are verifying reports that the victims were part of the “Banal” group, allegedly a band of rowdy teenagers, which recently landed in the news after being tagged in at least two particularly violent killings.

One of these was a robbery in which the group allegedly gatecrashed a wedding reception, robbed the bride and killed the groom’s father.

According to Montejo, if these allegations were true, there was a possibility that yesterday’s attack was perpetrated by “fed-up” victims.