POLICE are looking into the personal grudge angle instead of robbery in the ambush-killing of a 57-year-old contractor in Barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City on Monday morning.
Engineer Roel Perales of Poblacion, Compostela, was driving his Suzuki Vitara on his way to Zone Paleya in Barangay Paknaan in Mandaue City, where his warehouse project was located when three unidentified assailants on two motorcycles ambushed him in the area.
Perales, who left his home at 8:30 a.m. had just withdrawn cash from an automated teller machine (ATM) in Consolacion town and was on his way to Paknaan when he was shot dead.
“The amount of of money from the victim’s sling bag was not a big amount as it was just withdrawn from an ATM in Consolacion town several minutes prior to the incident, said PO3 Jeffrey Neiz, investigator of the Investigation and Detective Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO).
Neiz said the victim’s gold necklace and bracelet were intact except for his personal hand gun that was placed in the sling bag which was taken by the assailants.
He also said that the victim’s wife, Lilibeth, told them that she had never known her husband to be trouble in his 20 years as a contractor.
Lilibeth Perales, in an interview with CDN, said that her husband didn’t mention if somebody was threatening his life or if he was involved in any trouble.
“Pero kadtong didto mi sa China last December, naghisgot siya bahin sa among property nga iyang gipangalan tanan nako, like sa among balay, negosyo ug uban pa, pero wala ra na nako panumbalinga (But when we were in China last December, he mentioned about our property which he put in my nam. These include our house, business and others, but I just don’t care about it), she said.
Perales said she believed that her husband’s assailants would have wanted to make it appear that robbery was the motive in the killing when the assailants took her husband’s sling bag.
But she said she believed this was not the real motive in the killing.
Chief inspector Michael Angelo Beltran, Jagobiao Police Station Precinct chief, said they were checking security cameras in the area and in roads where the engineer might have passed including the Consolacion area to get leads on the assailants.
“We will conduct a series of follow ups to solve the case as soon as possible,” said Beltran.
Compostela Mayor Joel Quiño arrived in the area after learning about the incident.
He said Engineer Perales was his best friend.
He also said that he hoped that there would be a speedy investigation, and that the perpetrators would be identified and the family would get justice.
Investigation showed that Perales left his house in Compostela at 8:30 a.m., withdrew money at an ATM in Consolacion, and proceeded to his warehouse project in Barangay Paknaan in Mandaue City.
About 100 meters from his warehouse project, the attackers on motorcycles, who were wearing full face helmets fired, at Perales, who was driving his Nissan Navara.
Perales was hit several times in the body causing his death.