Laguna board member, 2 others killed in ambush

MANILA, Philippines - A happy fiesta celebration in a barangay in San Pablo City, Laguna turned bloody when five armed men killed a provincial board member, his security aide and a former barangay official and wounded two others in an ambush Wednesday night, authorities said.

One of the attackers, however, was killed in the exchange of gunfire.

Chief Superintendent Perfecto Palad, Calabarzon police director, said they were eyeing politics and communist rebels in the killing of provincial board member Danny Yang.

Palad said Yang was a former sympathizer of the New People’s Army who turned his back on the underground group and organized anti-NPA activities in Laguna.

The other fatalities were Yang’s security aide Brando de los Santos and Manolo Barcenas, former chairman of Barangay Bautista in San Pablo City.

Wounded were Jovy Lopez, another security aide of Yang, and a bystander, Marc Edward Herrera.

Palad said Yang and his party had dinner in the house of barangay head Evelyn Samson, host of the fiesta celebration, last Wednesday.

At about 9:30 p.m., the group decided to proceed to the Bautista Elementary School where Yang was apparently the main judge in a singing contest.

However, upon reaching a dimly lit portion of a feeder road going to the school, the armed men opened fire at Yang’s group.

Palad said one of Yang’s aides, Rommel Viterbo, traded shots with the ambushers, killing one of them and wounding another who was brought along by his fleeing companions.

Those wounded were immediately brought to the Pagamutang Panlalawigan ng Laguna, but Yang and De los Santos were declared dead on arrival. Barcenas was transferred to the San Pablo Community Hospital where he died while undergoing treatment.

Police found at the ambush scene 14 empty caliber .45 shells, three live caliber .45 bullets, a deformed slug of an unknown caliber, and an Armscor two-tone caliber .45 pistol with one magazine lying beside the slain suspect, who remained unidentified. – With Ed Amoroso and Arnell Ozaeta