Suspected vigilantes kill vendor in Ermita

Suspected vigilantes have struck again, this time shooting dead a vendor along Escaño Street corner M. L. Quezon Boulevard in barangay Ermita Friday evening.

Police identified the victim as Nonito Guevarra, 41, a resident of the area, who sustained a single gunshot wound in his head and died on the spot.

Initial investigation conducted by police disclosed that Guevarra was standing in front of the house of his neighbor, Nimfa Dinofol, when two men onboard a motorcycle arrived.

One of the assailants, who were wearing helmets and masks, reportedly alighted from the motorcycle and opened fire from behind, hitting Guevarra in the head.

Witnesses said the attackers then drove the motorcycle toward Quezon Boulevard, leaving the body of the victim slumped onto the pavement of the road.

Responding policemen recovered from the crime scene an empty shell of a .45 caliber revolver and a pair of black rubber sandal, which was reportedly left by one of the assailants.

Last Wednesday, an ex-convict fell victim to another suspected vigilante attack when he was shot dead by a motorcycle-riding man.

The victim was watching his friends playing dama when being shot by his assailant along T. Padilla Extension near the Tejero barangay hall.

Some sectors have criticized the police for their failure to arrest those responsible for the spate of vigilante-type killings that rocked the city since December 2004.

The Commission on Human Rights said the unsolved summary executions in the city might affect the country's membership with the United Nations Human Rights Council. - Jose P. Sollano