1 shot dead, 4 hurt at picket line

A printing operator fell dead from a shotgun blast while four other colleagues were hurt in the melee that erupted between picketing labor union members and security guards of a packaging firm late Tuesday afternoon in Caloocan City.

In his report to Superintendent Napoleon Cuaton, Station Investigation and Detective Management Bureau chief, identified the lone fatality as Dante Teotimo, 35, printing operator of the Schneider Packaging Corp. at 86 Golden Road, Gen. Luis, Industrial Subdivision, Bgy. 166, Kaybiga, Caloocan City.

Teotimo was taken to the Lourdes General Hospital in Kaybiga for treatment of shrapnel wounds in the right side of the body from a 12-gauge shotgun but was declared dead on arrival by Dr. Jenny San Luis. The four wounded were identified as Dante Cabardo, 24, cutter operator, of Novaliches, Quezon City; Eliseo Aranda, 48, helper-operator of Bagong Silang, Caloocan City; Leo Diego, 27, blowing operator, of Novaliches, Quezon City; and Teody Dapac, 25, delivery helper, of BF Homes, Caloocan City.

PO2 Julian Chavez of the Substation 4 investigation branch-North Extension Office, said the four were taken to the Dr. Jose Rodriguez Medical Center (formerly Tala Hospital) for treatment of minor wounds and have since been released. Security guards Gilbert Castromayor, 29; Heminio Sedoco, 44; Nonie Cabrillos, 29; Willy Estorco, 22; and Edgar Domingo, 35; all of Marban Security and Investigation Agency with offices in Tandang Sora Avenue, Culiat, Quezon City, took the paraffin test yesterday at the Scene of the Crime Operation offices at the Caloocan Police Headquarters.

Seized and sent to SOCO for ballistics testing were a 12-gauge shotgun issued to Castromayor and four rounds of ammunition from the guards. Also recovered from the crime scene as evidence were four spent shells.

PO2 Allan Budios, officer on case, said picketing workers (allegedly members of the Partidong Manggagawa ng Pilipinas) were allegedly setting up streamers in front of the company premises when the guards tried to stop them at around 5:15 p.m. Tuesday. When the workers refused to heed them, Castromayor fired a warning shot.

In a police statement, witnesses Teody Dapac, Wilmer Solis and Dante Arguelles, all plant workers, told Chavez plant manager Filipina Mandap came out of the office and ordered the guards to fire at them. "Sige, pagbabarilin ninyo na yan. Kung hindi, tatanggalin ko kayo (sa trabaho)," Mandap was quoted as saying, after which the guards allegedly started firing. Chavez said Mandap has been included in the charge sheet (homicide) as a respondent.

Domingo, who was positively identified as the one who pointed his gun and fired at the victims, denied the allegations. "Hindi ako pumutok. Nakita ko na lang may tumumba (Teotimo)," he told The STAR while waiting for the result of the paraffin tests. – Jerry Botial