Belmonte ambush: NBI confirms bloodstains in getaway car

ILIGAN CITY, Philippines – The stains found in a sport utility vehicle (SUV) allegedly used as a getaway car by the suspects in the ambush of Rep. Vicente Belmonte were confirmed to be bloodstains, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said on Friday.

The NBI also confirmed that its agents recovered four high-powered firearms near the spot where the attack occurred last Dec. 11.

NBI agents found the car abandoned at a secluded place in Oroquieta City.

Swabs taken from the vehicle tested positive for bloodstains, according to Iligan NBI chief Alex Caburnay.

Witnesses said they saw a bloodied man being helped by his companions into the vehicle.

The suspects reportedly burned the van they used to block Belmonte’s vehicle before they transferred to a waiting SUV, a Toyota Revo, investigators said. 

Meanwhile, authorities brought alleged gunman Dominador Tumala back to the ambush site.

Tumala, who was arrested in Barangay Liberty, Laguindingan town on Dec. 13, pointed the agents to a spot where at least four firearms were hidden.

The firearms – an M16, two baby Armalites and a carbine – were placed under the custody of authorities, said Senior Superintendent Graciano Mijares, chief of Police Regional Office 10.

Tumala was one of the three suspects who failed to board the getaway vehicle, authorities said.

Earlier, the military said Tumala was a former New People’s Army rebel. He reportedly left the communist movement and engaged in contract killings.