Furniture shop manager shot dead

CEBU, Philippines - A daughter of a furniture shop owner in Mandaue City died Friday night after she was shot by an unidentified gunman while on board a tricycle.

The victim, identified as Imelda Tio Yu, 44, succumbed to a gunshot wound on her chest. The bullet, which exited from her hip also hit the driver, Roger Calumba.

A second shot from the suspect hit a certain Arnel Juanite on the left knee.

Yu passed away an hour after she was brought to the Mandaue City Hospital.

Calumba and Juanite were brought to the Don Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City for further treatment.

Senior Police Officer 2 Marcos Noval of the Investigation and Detective Management Branch of the Mandaue City Police Office said it is most likely that intent was really to kill Yu.

Yu, despite being a daughter of the owner of the furniture chain, reportedly lived a very simple life.

"Dili dyud tulis maoy tumong ato kay way dalang cellphone ang biktima ug gamay ray kwartang dala. Simple ra daw ni  siya kaayo ug maoy naandan nga magsakay ra dyud ni jeep ug kada uli kay mohapit sa merkado sa Maguikay kada hapon aron naay paliton una mouli sa ilaha nga magsakay ra sad og tricycle," Noval said.

Investigation revealed that Yu left her office at Sun Gold-Subangdaku branch, which she manages, at around 5:30 p.m. and boarded a jeepney to the Maguikay flyover where she bought vegetables from a satellite market in the area.

From there, she boarded the motorcycle driven by Calumba to go home to Holy Family Town Homes in Barangay Maguikay when the gunman approached and shot her. The suspect left the area immediately on board another motorcycle driven by a cohort.

Police recovered two empty bullets of a .45 cal. pistol from the crime scene.

Yu's personnel at the branch described her as a "good employer."

It was one of the employees who identified the victim after she was called by the police through a number in a small piece of paper inside Yu's plastic pouch.

Manhunt is ongoing for the arrest of the suspects. — /JMO  (FREEMAN)