CEBU, Philippines - A man was shot dead while another committed suicide yesterday in Cebu City.
Russel Del Rosario, 27, a native of Luzon who stayed in a lodge along Leon Kilat Street, Cebu City, was shot dead by motorcycle-riding men along P. Lopez and Borromeo Streets in Barangay Kalubihan, Cebu City yesterday at around 5 am.
SPO1 Victor Ruel Ayuman, homicide investigator, told The FREEMAN that prior to the attack, the victim was last seen texting with two unidentified men.
“Naa kuno ni siya’y kauban nga duha ka tawo nga iyang gi-ka estorya nga nawala ra dihang gi-pusil siya,” he said. (He was allegedly talking to two men who disappeared when he was shot.)
Based on their investigation, a red motorcycle suddenly approached and opened fire at the victim.
Though wounded, the victim managed to flee 50 meters towards Colon area before he slumped to the ground bleeding.
Rosario succumbed to a fatal gunshot wound on his right chest which went through his upper back.
Security Guard Juelito Añana, who saw the incident, said that the assailant reportedly tailed Rosario and fired two additional shots before fleeing.
Ayuman said they are eying the possibility that Rosario was involved in illegal drugs because of his alleged suspicious “transaction” prior to the attack.
The investigator said that the victim’s live-in partner, who requested anonymity, revealed that the couple recently arrived in Cebu City from Luzon for an undisclosed reason.
Investigators, however, failed to recover Rosario’s phone which might have contained some information to help identify his assailants.
“Wala gyud namo nakuha iyang cellphone nga gi-gamit. Posible nga gi-kuha to sa iyang mga ka-estorya,” Ayuman said. (We weren’t able to recover the cell phone that he used. It may have been taken by the two men he was talking to earlier.)
Meanwhile, Sadrax Abay-abay, 39, a former employee of Atlas Consolidated Mining & Development Corporation, of Sitio Mangga, Barangay Bulacao of the same city, was found dead hanging from the ceiling of his room.
The victim’s 65-year-old mother, Wilfreda, was the one who found her son’s lifeless body at around 2:30 am. Ayuman, who also investigated the incident, said that Sadrax, who was drunk, was last seen alive on Wednesday night arguing with his live-in partner, Arlene Raga, at around 8:30 pm where he threatened to kill himself.
He said Raga and Wilfreda were both used to the victim’s threats, especially when drunk, and they just ignored it.
Wilfreda alleged that his son might have killed himself after he got fed up with Raga’s attitude which had tormented his son for quite sometime.
“Iyang gi-dibdib (victim) kay atong mi-resign siya sa ATLAS, gi-gasto sa iyang kapuyo ang iyang nadawat nga P100, 000. Bisan mangayo iyang anak, di niya (Raga) tagaan,” said Ayuman quoting Wilfreda. (He might have harbored ill feelings because when he resigned from Atlas, his live-in partner spent the P100, 000 he received. She wouldn’t even give their child some money.)
Raga was allowed to leave their house yesterday to escape the victim’s enraged family who considered her as the reason why Sadrax killed himself.
Policemen recovered the 10-feet long yellow nylon rope which Sadrax used to hang himself inside his room. (FREEMAN)