Cop chief’s slay halts Cebu town canvassing

CEBU — Loud bursts of gunfire shattered the uneasy peace that prevailed over the town of Madridejos late Tuesday afternoon when an Army sergeant drove up to the municipal hall and gunned down the town police chief as he was standing just outside the police station.

Just as the Commission on Elections was reportedly about to lift its control over the tension-wracked town, an Army jeep driven by a soldier of the Army’s 78th Infantry Battalion screeched to a halt in front of the police station.

M/Sgt. Mario Benito, who was in civilian clothes, jumped out of the vehicle, grabbed the M-16 rifle of the driver, disarmed the police chief, Arsenio Escarda, and before the horrified eyes of many witnesses, fired away.

Escarda crashed lifeless onto the pavement, his head and body peppered with bullets.

Benito then grabbed the caliber .38 revolver of Escarda and fled. He later reportedly surrendered to a certain Capt. Ombos of the 78th IB.

Since it was placed under Comelec control on Election Day itself, Maridejos town has been swarming with elements of the Police Regional Mobile Group (RMG) and the Army’s 78th IB.

As the shots rang out, somebody promptly doused the lights at the town hall, where the canvassing of votes had begun.

RMG policemen in full-battle gear then took up perimeter positions outside the building, sealing all entry and exit points.

Because the casualty was a policeman and his attacker a soldier, tension promptly escalated between the two units assigned to secure the electoral process in the town.

About 15 minutes after Escarda’s killing, shots again rang out but it was not clear who fired them.

To ease the tension, the 78th IB was later ordered withdrawn.

Benito was not part of the Army unit detailed in the town. It was not clear what he was doing there although unverified reports said he was supposedly on an intelligence mission.

It was initially determined that Escarda and Benito had had an altercation over still unclear reasons.

Meanwhile, there were suspicions that the killing was politically motivated because Escarda was allegedly supporting Madridejos Mayor Letecia Mancio.

Just days before the elections, Mancio was ordered removed from office after the Comelec determined that the real winner in the 2001 elections was Zenaida Salazar.

Mancio, however, refused to give up the post and continues to hold office. — Freeman News Service