Probers review MMDA videos in Jose Luis Yulo ambush

MANILA, Philippines — A police task force is reviewing footage taken by closed-circuit television cameras of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority  (MMDA) to help identify the killers of businessman Jose Luis Yulo and his driver, who were ambushed along EDSA in Mandaluyong City last Sunday.

Chief Superintendent Bernabe Balba, Eastern Police District director and concurrent head of Special Investigation Task Group Yulo, said they want to find out if a vehicle had been tailing the Toyota Grandia rented by Yulo from Muñoz in Quezon City to the intersection of EDSA and Reliance street, where he was attacked.

Yulo and his party came from Pampanga, where he took part in a drag race, Balba said.

In Muñoz, a messenger got off the van as Yulo used a restroom, Balba said, noting that it may be at this juncture that the businessman was followed.

“We are reviewing the CCTV footages of the MMDA. But we have not established anything as yet,” Balba said in an interview.

The MMDA had put up CCTV cameras to monitor traffic buildup and address problems immediately.

The task force is also working to get copies of CCTV footage from business establishments in the vicinity of the crime scene to determine whether the killing of Yulo, 62, and his driver, Allan Santos, 55, was caught on video.

Balba said they are also investigating Yulo’s background to determine whether he had enemies who wanted him silenced.

“We are looking at all angles that might help us to uncover the truth surrounding the incident including his business transactions or possible threats. That’s why we are appealing to the public or motorists who might have captured the incident in photos or videos, CCTV footages,” Balba said.

He said that in particular, they are looking for the plate number of the motorcycle used by the assailants who ambushed Yulo.

The businessman’s companion, Esmeralda Ignacio, is confined at a hospital.

Police recovered 12 bullet casings and a slug from a .45 caliber pistol at the crime scene and a loaded .38 caliber Colt revolver from Yulo’s belongings, Balba said.