Sunday, October 29, 2006 2 rugby boys murdered, 1 survive By Syril G. Repe
TWO more, this time both minors, were murdered in cold blood, bringing to six the number of people linked to illegal drugs killed in the City of Gentle People this month.
Another minor, also believed to be a rugby user, survived in a separate incident more than seven hours later.
Police investigator PO3 Jonathan Vailoces identified the slain boys as Susing Abalo, 17, and Ernie Domingo, 15, with no known address.
Vailoces said based on their investigation both minors were sitting on a corner in front of the Bajumpandan barangay outpost at the Habitat 1 crossing around 7:45 p.m. Monday when two unidentified men onboard a motorcycle appeared and stopped in front of them.
He said the backrider then fired several times hitting and killing the two boys. The two men escaped after the attack.
Vailoces said the Dumaguete City police station learned of the incident 45 minutes later when they received a telephone call from Mercy Bungcasan, a resident of the area.
The police investigator said the two boys were already dead with multiple gunshot wounds on their bodies when the dispatched police team arrived.
Recovered from the crime scene were seven spent shells, a live bullet, and a deformed slug, all from a 9 millimeter gun.
Jesus Soreño, 74, married, and a stay-in caretaker of a welding shop across the Bajumpandan outpost, said the two boys were sitting on a concrete bench when the killers appeared.
Soreño said he heard two gunshots and saw the motorcycle speeding westward then returned and stopped in front of the slumped victims.
At the same moment, he said, he heard successive gunshots after which he saw the motorcycle speeding away eastward along Bajumpandan road.
Almost eight hours later, a 16-year-old boy from Barangay Lumbangan in Mabinay was shot but survived the attack near a banana grove in Barangay Motong.
Vailoces said that based on investigation, the victim was riding a motorcycle with two unidentified men and upon reaching the crime scene he was shot by one of his companions.
The victim was hit on the right arm, but the bullet passed through.
He said the teenager appeared at the Dumaguete City police station to report the incident.
Quoting the victim, Vailoces said, someone told the boy to join him onboard the motorcycle and brought him to Motong.
On arriving near a clump of banana plants, the driver allegedly stopped the vehicle saying they would wait for another motorcycle following them behind.
The boy said moments later the vehicle with two riders arrived and the unidentified man on the back seat fired at him, hitting his elbow.
The two motorcycles escaped after the shooting.
Vailoces said the slain boys and the young survivor have numerous police records and had been arrested several times for sniffing rugby but were released.
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