3 slain in Mandaluyong home

MANILA, Philippines - A couple and a relative were shot dead by four men while they were asleep in their house in Barangay Addition Hills, Mandaluyong City Tuesday.

Nelson Obina, 43; his partner, Ronadel Galvez, 42, and a houseguest, Arnulfo Aninao, were all shot in the head. They were declared dead on arrival at the Mandaluyong City Medical Center (MCMC).

The murders may be linked to the illegal drug trade, city police chief Senior Superintendent Tyrone Masigon said.

He said the victims were sound asleep in their rooms on the second floor of their Welfareville Compound home when two of the assailants barged in just before 10 p.m. Tuesday.

The other two acted as lookouts.

The gunshots alerted the couple’s daughter, Janel Obina, 19, who rushed out of her room. She saw one of the assailants, who wore a baseball cap that hid his face.

“The suspects walked away from the scene and nobody in the neighborhood recognized them,” Masigon said in an interview.

Investigators recovered a slug and seven shells from a 9mm pistol and four shells from a .45 caliber pistol at the crime scene. They also found several pieces of aluminum foil and empty plastic sachets in the house, Masigon said.

Masigon said the couple was out on bail on charges of illegal possession of shabu and drug paraphernalia after being jailed for five years.

However, the Mandaluyong police chief admitted that the couple was not listed among the city’s drug suspects.