3 witnesses to Erice aide's slay surface

MANILA, Philippines - The Northern Police District (NPD) has at least three witnesses who saw the murder of a political leader of Caloocan City Vice Mayor Edgar Erice Tuesday, an official said yesterday.

Northern Police District investigation division chief Superintendent Ferdinand del Rosario said that one of the witnesses saw the gunman’s face and how he shot at Samuel Delana, 44, as the victim was maneuvering his vehicle along the main road on Phase 5 in Bagong Silang at around 10:15 a.m.

“For now, we have at least three witnesses and one of them happened to see the face of the gunman as he alighted from their motorcycle and shot Delana,” Del Rosario, the NPD’s designated spokesman on Delana’s case, told The STAR.

Del Rosario said the gunman appeared to be “professional” because despite having eye contact with the witness, he ignored her and remain focused on his task.

The gunman, using a .45 caliber pistol, fired five shots at Delana hitting him in the center of the chest, left cheek, jaw, left side of the body and in the right palm. Delana died on the spot.

A stray bullet hit Delana’s passenger, Nelda Dioquino, in the left shoulder. She was in the front seat beside Delana.

Prior to the attack, Delana was about to park his vehicle when another car reportedly moved in front of him, blocking his path. The men on the motorcycle fled after the shooting while the car that blocked the victim’s path also sped away.

The victims were on their way to the house of Merlita Tortoles, another political leader of Erice.

Del Rosario said none of their three witnesses mentioned the other vehicle but said they are gathering more information.

NPD director Chief Superintendent Antonio Decano, during Friday’s press briefing, expressed hope that more witnesses would surface. He said the incident happened in broad daylight in a populated area and the killers did not even bother to hide their faces.

He said politics is one of the possible motives they are investigating. On Friday, Mayor Enrico Echiverri offered a P200,000 reward for any information that may led to the identification and arrest of Delana’s killers.