EDITORIAL - Wrong suspect

The gun is the wrong caliber and the tattoo is different, according to an eyewitness, a relative of the victim. The witness reportedly saw a heart tattooed on the left side of the gunman’s neck. Construction worker Airon Cruz, apprehended in connection with the murder of Remate reporter Rubylita Garcia, has a cross tattooed on the right side. At least two other witnesses in the murder also said Cruz, 23, is not the gunman.

Cruz, however, remained in police custody yesterday for a different offense. The Cavite police had apprehended Cruz in a sting operation at his house in Cavite City early last Tuesday, two days after Garcia was shot dead in front of her house by two gunmen. Police said they seized eight plastic sachets of shabu and a .22-caliber revolver from Cruz. Garcia, however, was shot with a .38-caliber handgun. A police official described Cruz as a hired gun involved in drug deals. Cruz will face charges for illegal gun and drug possession.

It’s good to know that police are doing their job of keeping bad guys off the streets. It would be even better if the charges against Cruz, which are unrelated to Garcia’s murder, will stick. The Cavite police force has been under pressure to get Garcia’s killers amid reports that the chief of police of Tanza had been implicated by the victim herself before she succumbed to five gunshot wounds. The pressure should not lead to a rushed, haphazard investigation, with fall guys trotted out to the public so police can announce that the case is closed.

By most accounts, there are several witnesses who can recognize the gunmen. There is supposed to be closed-circuit television footage of the killers that can further facilitate the manhunt. Solving this case should not prove as tough as most of the other murders targeting journalists. Police must avoid resorting to fall guys in the rush to declare the case closed. This is not only an injustice to both Garcia and the fall guy; it also means that the real murderers will get away, and may kill again.