Valenzuela cops clueless in rob-slay of ex-cop, niece

MANILA, Philippines - Valenzuela City police investigators still do not have any leads on the three motorcycle-riding gunmen who killed a former police officer and his niece and robbed them of P700,000 the victims had withdrawn from two banks Thursday, an official said yesterday.

Chief Inspector Danilo Bugay, Valenzuela City police intelligence and investigation chief, said there were “no developments” yet in their investigation of the attack on ex-policeman Jovencio Pagador, 53; and his niece Hayde Paloma, 26, both residents of Barangay Punturin.

Pagador, who owned a manpower service agency, was driving to his office when two motorcycle-riding robbers shot at him. He was hit and lost control of his car, which crashed into a concrete fence.

Paloma tried to flee on foot, but the robbers gunned her down and took the money from Pagador’s car. The robbers did not take Pagador’s .45 caliber handgun, which was on the floor of the vehicle.

Investigators recovered nine .45 caliber shells and two slugs from the crime scene.

Two others were attacked by motorcycle-riding robbers earlier this year in Valenzuela, both after withdrawing money from banks.

On May 7, businesswoman Nita Chua, 39, a resident of Barangay Arkong Bato, was robbed and shot by motorcycle-riding men in Barangay Canumay after she withdrew some P50,000 from a bank in Barangay Paso de Blas.

Armed with .45 caliber pistols, the robbers first shot at the tire of Chua’s Nissan Patrol, forcing her to stop. They ordered Chua to open her car door and took her money. The robbers shot Chua in the hand when she resisted.

On April 2, company driver Reynaldo Almario, 52, was shot dead by motorcycle-riding robbers in Barangay Maysan.

Almario had just withdrawn P500,000 cash from a bank, also in Barangay Paso de Blas with Jessica Santillan, when robbers riding on a motorcycle shot the front tire of their Mitsubishi Montero.

The suspects, also armed with .45 caliber pistols, killed Almario before escaping with the P500,000, but dropped P200,000 while fleeing.

The Valenzuela City police identified one of Almario’s killers as a certain Ronan Gabriel of Bulacan, reportedly a member of a criminal gang.

The slugs recovered from the Pagador rob-slay case were brought to the Northern Police District crime laboratory to determine whether they were fired from the weapons used in the two earlier crimes.