Husband shoots wife, lawyer in courtroom

An angry husband shot dead his estranged wife and her lawyer in a Las Piñas courtroom yesterday morning after the woman filed a suit to have their marriage annulled, police said.

Roberto Tubale, 53, pulled out a gun and fired on Lolita Tubale, 51, and her lawyer, Rebecca Basa, 57, as they waited for the hearing to start, said Senior Inspector Jandale Sulit, who heads the city police’s investigation section.

Basa and her client were rushed to the Perpetual Help Medical Center, where they both died late afternoon, according to Police Officer 3 Eduardo Rodaje.

The suspect fled and police have launched a manhunt.

Investigators could not say how Tubale was able to sneak a gun into the courtroom. Sulit said it was possible that the court bailiff was not at his post, allowing the suspect to bring in a gun.

Rodaje said the suspect could have fired his gun from the back of the courtroom. Both victims sustained gunshot wounds in the back of the head.

Divorce is illegal in the Philippines, prompting many couples to have their marriages annulled instead.    – With AFP