Photo-op hurting case vs assassin?

President Arroyo may have decided too late in ending her photo-op sessions with arrested criminal suspects.

Sources at the Western Police District said the damage may have already been done in the arrest of the suspected hitman in the killing of former Manila councilor Chika Go.

Suspect Victor Macaldo, 27, was among the final batch of criminals presented by the President the other day as Mrs. Arroyo announced she would be refocusing her attention from the anti-crime drive to the recovery of the economy.

One source claimed they had intended to keep Macaldo’s arrest a secret and probe him for more information. The alleged gun-for-hire has admitted to pulling the trigger but refused to identify the individual who hired him for the job.

"Since the arrest has been made public, it would be more difficult to squeeze any information from the suspect who is expected to become very uncooperative," the source, who requested anonymity, said.

The source said they were only forced to present Macaldo to the President for a hastily-called press conference at the WPD headquarters on Monday on orders of the "higher-ups."

Police officials earlier said the Go murder case was already solved. They later admitted that the brains behind the assassination has yet to identified.

Elements of the WPD District Police Intelligence Unit arrested Macaldo inside the comfort room of a Jollibee branch in Tayuman, Sta. Cruz last Saturday following a tip from an informant. Seized from the suspect were a 9-mm pistol and a .22 caliber pistol with silencer.

When questioned, Macaldo admitted to being a gun-for-hire as well as killing of Go on Aug. 10 in Binondo, Manila. While Macaldo did not match a police sketch of the gunman, he was positively identified by a witness as the one who shot Go.

Go, 47, who served as a Manila third district councilor from 1992-1995, was driving to his condominium along Reina Regente Street aboard his light brown Mitsubishi Pajero (WGU-768) and got stuck in a traffic jam when a lone assailant walked up to the van and shot him.