EDITORIAL - Who killed Ramirez?

Former mayor Ricky Ramirez of Medellin is the latest controversial local government official to be killed in another gruesome murder of high-profile personalities in Cebu. His killing comes after the series of murders across the province in the government’s intensified campaign against all forms of criminality, especially the illegal drug trade.

Who killed Ramirez on the midnight of Tuesday? The answer is yet to be known as police investigators are still collating the evidence, hoping to score a lead that will help solve his murder.

What we know is that at least 15 armed men barged into the town’s Bogo-Medellin Medical Center where he had been under hospital arrest for months for allegedly possessing unlicensed firearms and drug paraphernalia.

However, like other high-profile killings, it seems his death would likely be just another incident that police seem to have trouble solving. The usual angles investigators would zero in on would personal, business, or illegal drugs.

But, as usual, it would be hard for the police to pinpoint any specific suspect in the case. In fact, Philippine National Police chief Oscar Albayalde admitted that investigators are currently facing a blank wall in the investigation into Ramirez’s murder.

Ramirez was killed in a manner similar to that of Ronda town Mayor Mariano Blanco – also linked to illegal drugs by the government – who was gunned down inside his office in the municipal hall last year. Until now, no suspect in Blanco’s murder has been arrested.

Now, it seems Ramirez’s case is bound to suffer the same fate as Blanco’s. However, this is not to conclude Ramirez’s killing has something to do with his arrest for illegal possession of guns and drug paraphernalia.

Only a thorough investigation will determine the motive. Therefore, with all eyes now watching every pace of the probe, police authorities need to step up their effort to speedily solve the case.