Cop kills civilian over traffic dispute

A rookie Manila policeman was arrested for allegedly shooting dead an unarmed civilian following a traffic altercation in Tondo last Monday afternoon.

A visibly remorseful Police Officer 1 Joel Pelayo, 26, assigned at the Manila Police District’s Scene of the Crime Office, refused to talk to media and instead opted to wait for his counsel.

Officer-on-case SPO3 Danilo Vidad identified the victim of the shooting incident as Richard Bryan Cruz, 23, a musician, of Juan Luna street, Tondo.

Police said Cruz was riding his bicycle when he figured in a near collision with the officer’s scooter at the corner of Pampanga along Juan Luna streets in Tondo at around 3:20 p.m.

The two soon engaged in a shouting match until Pelayo, who was in civilian clothes, pulled out his wallet containing his police badge and allegedly used it to slap the victim.

The officer pulled out his gun and tried to hit Cruz. The victim managed to block the strike, causing the gun to fire and hit him on his right hand finger.

Cruz attempted to run away, but fell down. The officer allegedly pumped three more bullets into the victim’s body, who was lying face down on the pavement.

Bystanders rushed the victim to the President Diosdado Macapagal Memorial and Medical Center in Caloocan City, where he was declared dead on arrival. The officer was arrested by responding policemen.

Vidad said that apart from his wound on the finger, the victim sustained two more wounds in the back and another below the left ear.

Witnesses positively identified Pelayo as the person who shot Cruz.

Arresting policemen seized his service firearm for ballistic examination.

Vidad said the rookie policeman could be charged with murder, a non-bailable offense.