Police closing in on suspected killers of Caloocan village chief

Police are closing in on the suspected killers of a Caloocan City barangay chairman who was gunned down near the barangay hall on New Year’s eve.

This developed as two witnesses surfaced over the weekend claiming that they were only a few feet away from the suspects when they shot Rodolfo Pagaran, chairman of Barangay 120 on 2nd Avenue, Grace Park, at around 12:15 a.m. on Thursday.

The witnesses said Pagaran was walking in front of an eatery near the barangay hall after visiting fire victims in his barangay when waylaid by the armed suspects.

Pagaran sustained bullet wounds in the chest and leg and later died in a hospital.

Barangay watchmen recovered from the crime scene four empty shells of caliber .45 pistol.

One of the witnesses described the triggerman as heavily built, around 5’5’’ in height with oval-shaped face and pimple scars, and wearing a gray shirt, denim pants and a gray bull-cap.

Another witness said one of the suspects, whom he described as approximately 25 years old, medium-built, wearing a blue sweatshirt, denim pants and rubber shoes, served as a lookout.

The witnesses told police that the suspects used a silver gray motorcycle as their getaway vehicle and was backed up by a heavily tainted white car.

Based on the witnesses’ accounts, police were able to come up with cartographic sketches of the suspects that would serve as one of the bases for the gunmen’s early identification.

Mayor Reynaldo Malonzo on Friday ordered Senior Superintendent Benjardi Mantele, the city police chief, to dig deeper into Pagaran’s killing.

The mayor said that the barangay chairman was very vocal about the Dec. 30 fire that left four people dead and at least 270 families homeless in his barangay.

He also advised Mantele to look into the possible motive behind the seven-hour blaze as it could have been deliberately done.

The lot where the fire victims’ houses once stood is said to be a private property.

Mantele, however, ssured on Friday that he is closely coordinating with the office of city fire marshal Agapito Nacario.

"We are looking into all possible motives on Pagaran’s killing," Mantele said.