Valenzuela road rage: 4 wounded

Four persons were injured, one critically, during a shooting rampage triggered by a simple traffic altercation before dawn in Valenzuela City yesterday.

Police identified the victims as Cerilo dela Cruz, 30, businessman, of 39 Dela Cruz Compound, Barangay Bagbaguin; Jose Noguera, 27, of 790 Paso de Blas; Gideon Sison, 32, of 794 Paso de Blas, and Godofredo Goli, 45, of 556 Paso de Blas, all of Valenzuela City.

The incident occurred along General Luis Road in Barangay Bagbaguin at about 12:30 a.m.

Dela Cruz, driving a white L-300 van with plate number UGA 797, with Noguera and Sison as passengers, was cruising along General Luis Road heading towards Paso de Blas when their van was nearly hit by a red Mazda car with plate number UVN 482.

The two vehicles came to a stop and their respective occupants alighted. A heated argument followed between Dela Cruz and the unidentified driver of the red Mazda car who was reportedly armed with a handgun.

The verbal tussle escalated and the armed man fired indiscriminately at the three victims, police said.

Dela Cruz was hit in the left arm while Sison and Noguera sustained bullet wounds in the body. They were rushed to the Manila Central University Hospital for treatment.

Goli, a bystander, was hit by a stray bullet in the left thigh and was initially brought to the Valenzuela District Hospital but was later transferred to the Dr. Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center in Manila due to his unstable condition, police added.

Police probers recovered from the crime scene 15 spent shells of a 9 mm pistol.

Superintendent Nemesio Neron, Valenzuela City police chief, ordered an immediate police manhunt for the suspect.

Goli’s wife told The STAR in a telephone interview that her husband was trying to check on the ongoing trouble among the group of motorists when several shots were fired hitting him once.

"Sabi ng asawa ko hindi lang daw nagkabigayan (My husband said it was only a simple traffic misunderstanding,)" she said.

Inspector Salvador dela Cruz, Valenzuela City police station investigation branch chief; said they have already arrested the suspect but refused to reveal his name pending investigation.

He only said that the suspect, a 45-year-old businessman, is undergoing tactical interrogation at the Valenzuela police station. The gun used in shooting the victims was missing.

"I cannot give more details of the incident except that it was triggered by a simple traffic altercation," Dela Cruz said. "Our investigation is still ongoing."