Police have sketches of 2 gunmen in judge’s killing

TANAUAN CITY — Two witnesses in last Thursday’s killing of a Regional Trial Court (RTC) judge here have come forward and provided investigators descriptions of the two gunmen.

Senior Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, Batangas police director, said the witnesses described the killers of RTC Judge Voltaire Rosales with ease, indicating that "they saw them clearly."

"It won’t be long that we will bring them (the killers) to the fold of the law," Magtibay said.

Rosales was ambushed at noon last Thursday while he was on his way home to Dasmariñas Village in Makati City.

He was driving his Pajero and upon reaching the corner of Platon and Gonzales streets here, two men peppered his van with caliber 9-mm. bullets.

One of the gunmen was described as between 30 and 35 years old, at least 5’6" tall, weighing about 135 to 140 pounds and has a medium build, fair complexion and round face.

The other gunman reportedly had the same features, except that he was a bit taller and had a slim build.

Police said the gunmen had waited for Rosales some 100 meters away from the city’s Hall of Justice, with their black motorcycle and L-300 van parked nearby.

Chief Inspector Florendo Saligao, city police chief, said the cartographic sketches will be a big help in the early solution of the killing.

"Some of our men could almost pinpoint the suspects based on the cartographic sketches and the intelligence information that we have," Saligao said. "But we still have to investigate deeper to properly identify the suspects."