Abra town chief faces murder raps

Police arrested a gun-for-hire who linked a town mayor in the ambush slaying of a barangay chairman and his five companions in Abra May last year.

Eugenio Califlores, 39, who was tagged as behind several murder cases in Abra was arrested by joint elements of the Gen. Tinio police station and the Abra provincial police office on Sept. 27. However, Senior Superintendent Alex Pumecha, Abra police provincial director announced the arrest of Califlores only yesterday after placing him under tactical interrogation for several days.

The result of the tactical interrogation prompted Pumecha to file multiple murder charges on Oct. 3 against Califlores, Tineg town Mayor Edwin Crisologo, Freddie Tabas, Sikkel Parado, Loreto Gangas, Arnold Castañeda, Robert Valera and Arnel Aguilar.

According to Pumecha, Califlores said it was Crisologo who financed and provided the firearms for the ambush slaying of Romero Guyang in the boundary of Barangays Pang-ot and Ba-i in Lagayan town on May 3, 2007.

Killed along with Guyang were Edward Guyang, Felima Califlores, Jerson Battalao, Bali Rudbio and Darwin Simmangen.

Wounded were Lorenzo Guyang, Armenio Ayab and Roderick Guyang.

Aside from Califlores, Crisologo and the other suspects remained at large.

After the ambush, Califlores went into hiding at Barangay Rio Chico in Gen. Tinio, Nueva Ecija.

However, the Cordillera police got wind of his whereabouts and a team headed by Chief Inspector Melvin Napiloy arrested him along with his cousin, Sonny Califlores, 28, for illegal possession of a 12-gauge shotgun.

Califlores was arrested on the strength of an arrest warrant for murder and frustrated murder committed in 1990 and 2000.

During tactical interrogation, Califlores said he was enjoying his stay incognito in Nueva Ecija when invited to return to Abra by his former employer, ex-mayor Solomon Lalugan of Lagayan town.

Upon his return, however, Aguilar met him and outlined plans to kill Guyang, who was then the president of Lagayan town’s Association of Barangay Chairmen.

It was Crisologo who financed and distributed firearms for their use in the ambush, Cali­flores said.

The notoriety of Califlores started on April 12, 1990, when as a CAFGU member, he shot to death Danilo Metodio at So Tabio, Poblacion Lagayan for which he was charged under Criminal Case No. 950.

He evaded arrest while under the employ of Lalugan, then the town mayor of Lagayan town.  – With Artemio Dumlao