Bohol's most wanted 'hired gun' killed

CEBU, Philippines - An alleged gun-for-hire and one of the most wanted persons in Bohol was killed in a shootout with policemen. who were about to serve him two arrest warrants, at Barangay Bantuan in Buenavista town of Bohol yesterday morning.

Senior Inspector Jojit Manangquil, deputy chief of the Bohol Police Provincial Intelligence Branch, identified the slain suspect as Ramel Tradio, alias “Ete,” who had been hunted by the police for a number of cases in court.

Manangquil said Tradio was involved in murder cases in Bohol as well as in Cebu where he was tagged in the killing of a Korean couple in Lapu-Lapu City few years ago. His case was just dismissed after the investigators were not able to get his exact name but only his alias.

At around 10:20 a.m. yesterday, the PIB operatives, Bohol Provincial Public Safety Company and Special Weapons and Tactics team of Bohol served the two warrants of arrest against Tradio for robbery and qualified theft, and murder cases.

Manangquil said the police teams were on full alert during the operation, knowing that the suspect was armed with long firearms such as M16, M14 and a grenade. As the operatives closed in on Tradio, they were fired at, resulting in the shootout, lasting for almost 20 minutes, including attempts of policemen to negotiate for his surrender. Tradio however shouted back saying he will never yield, even if it meant his life was in danger.

When one of the operatives almost got hit by Tradio, Manangquil said they have decided to return fire to subdue him. When they barged into Tradio’s house, they saw the suspect already dead with gunshot wounds.

Police recovered a .38-caliber revolver and illegal drug paraphernalia inside Tradio’s house, said Manangquil who added that they were initially confused why there was no high-powered firearm there. They later got reports that a family member of Tradio hid it.

Aside from robbery, qualified theft and murder cases, Tradio was also accused of raping the wife of his neighbors, but the victim did not file a case against him due to fear for their lives, said Manangquil.

Tradio was also involved in illegal drug activities in the area where some drug lords hired him to kill peddlers who failed to pay them. Now that the elections are coming, Manangquil said many politicians could also hire Tradio if they want to kill someone.   (FREEMAN)