Ecija barangay chief charged for massacre

GAPAN CITY, Philippines – A barangay chairman was charged with multiple murder and multiple frustrated murder for the massacre of a policeman and three civilians following an aborted ambush attempt on a son of a former mayoral candidate here on Tuesday.

Superintendent Bernard Orig, Gapan police chief, said Montano Barlis, chairman of Barangay Sta. Cruz, was arrested Tuesday night by a police team accompanied by Emerson Pascual who was the target of the ambush attempt.

Barlis is an ally of former three-term mayor Ernesto Natividad who is facing charges for the 2006 raid on a cockpit arena owned by the Pascual family. Two of Pascual’s brothers, Erickson and Ebertson, were killed in the attack.

Orig said five others involved in Tuesday’s incident have yet to be identified although they will soon come out with artist’s sketches based on the description of witnesses.

PO2 Jefferson Lim, maritime student King Jasper Juvinal, and driver Rufino Vendivil were killed following the ambush attempt which triggered a 10-minute firefight in a restaurant in Barangay San Lorenzo here.

On Tuesday afternoon, a fourth victim, Consuelo Manse, 86, died at the intensive care unit of the Good Samaritan Hospital.

Rodney Garcia, 16, is listed in stable condition but is still at the ICU of the same hospital. Pascual escaped unhurt.

Chief Superintendent Edgar Ladao, Region 3 police director, and Senior Superintendent Crizaldo Nieves, provincial police director, both visited Pascual at his residence in Barangay Pambuan yesterday.

Police said Pascual and his companions had just alighted from their vehicle and was about to enter a restaurant when they were fired at. The gunmen fled on board a beige Toyota Hi-lux vehicle with license plate TT-1506.

Some 500 slugs from various types of guns were found at the crime scene, including those from 9-mm pistols, .45-caliber pistols, M-16 Armalite rifles, and AK-47 and M-16 rifles.

Orig said they have yet to establish the motive behind the attack, but added that they are looking into politics and old grudge.

Pascual said prior to the incident, he came across Barlis. He said he had just attended the interment rites for a childhood friend and even greeted Barlis. “A minute after, it happened,” he said.