'Cagayan de Oro shootings isolated cases'

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – In less than 24 hours since the driver of a Department of Public Works and Highways official was killed in an ambush Monday morning, two shooting incidents quickly followed.

Early yesterday morning, Severino Gida was shot while on board an XRM motorcycle in Upper Carmen, not far from where Avaise Sombreo, driver of DPWH assistant regional director for northern Mindanao Mauro Bravo, was killed.

Police said Gida was a passenger of XRM driver Walter Jay Pagara who was on his way to a gasoline station for a gas refill when two unidentified men onboard another motorcycle tailed them and fired shots hitting Gida, who died on the spot.

Pagara was rushed to the JR Borja Memorial Hospital in Carmen where he is recovering from two gunshot wounds. Police said the motive could be theft.

On Monday evening, a certain Jomer Ilustresimo of Barangay Bugo was gunned down by still unknown assailants in Purok 3, Barangay Puerto.

Police recovered from Ilustresimo’s possession two sachets of white crystalline substance suspected as methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

According to Puerto police chief Senior Inspector Norberto Zafra, Ilustresimo’s death could be drug-related. “It’s either the victim is a drug user or a runner,” Zafra said.

Cagayan de Oro City Police Office acting city director Senior Superintendent Benedicto Lopez said the series of shootings is “not alarming” as they are only “isolated cases” and that the police are still in control of the situation.

Although COCPO has deployed police personnel around the city, Lopez said police visibility will only minimize the crime but not totally eliminate it. – Jigger Jerusalem