COTABATO CITY — Police and local officials are working together to identify the perpetrators behind the brutal killing of an elderly couple, both retired school teachers, inside their home in Barangay Poblacion 2 in the upland town of Banisila, Cotabato, before dawn Sunday, October 4.
The spouses Edwin Daquil Galeno, 81, and his 82-year-old spouse, Elsa Bermejo Galeno, were found lifeless by neighbors inside their house in Purok Matulungin-A in Barangay Poblacion 2. The neighbors had heard the couple shouting for help while they were allegedly being attacked by suspected robbers.
Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza, chairperson of the multi-sector peace and order council, on Monday urged police and local government officials in Banisilan to work together to swiftly resolve the case.
Officials of the Cotabato Provincial Police Office said barangay officials and responding police officers separately confirmed on Monday that Galeno died from a deep stab wound to the chest.
His wife, meanwhile, was reportedly struck in the head with a hard object, possibly a large piece of wood, causing her immediate death.
Brig. Gen. Ricky Bunayog, acting commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said intelligence units of their 602nd Brigade and its subordinate battalions are assisting the police in identifying the killers of the couple.
Local executives told reporters that the slain retired public school teachers were known for their active involvement in various community activities promoting peace and sustainable development in their barangay and nearby agricultural communities in Banisilan.