Drugs, personal grudge eyed in fatal shooting of woman in Quiot

A Scene of the Crime Operative processes the crime scene where Janine Bayarcal was shot dead on Friday, March 22. |Benjie B. Talisic

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police are checking if illegal drugs and personal grudge may be the motives behind the killing of a woman on early Friday morning, March 22, in Barangay Quiot, Cebu City.

Chief Inspector Keith Allen Andaya, Punta Princesa Police Station chief, said initial findings showed that the victim, identified as Janice Bayarcal, allegedly had ties to the illegal drugs trade.

“Among nahibaw-an nga sugoon ni siya papalit og illegal drugs. Kanang murag runner gani,” said Andaya in a phone interview with Cebu Daily News Digital.

(We have learned that the victim would allegedly do errands like allegedly buying illegal drugs for customers — allegedly like a runner for illegal drugs.)

“Nay manugo niya so siya mopalit pero dili daw niya ihatag or i-remit. Kanang manumbling gani. So atong gitan-aw usab kung naa bay mga nasuko niya. Ug si kinsa to iyahang mga connections sa illegal activities,” he added. 

(Someone would allegedly ask her to buy illegal drugs, but she would not allegedly remit them or she would not allegedly give the illegal drugs to those who asked her to buy them. So we are investigating if there is somebody who is angry at her, and who are her connections to the illegal drug activities.)

Read more: Woman shot dead in Barangay Quiot

Bayarcal’s corpse was found beneath a white pick-up truck parked along the main road of Bayanihan Village in Barangay Quiot, Cebu City. 

Andaya said they had no leads yet that would help them identify the suspects. 

However, he said Bayarcal could have attempted to hide from the assailants by crawling underneath the truck. 

“Actually nitago na siya didto (sa pick-up). Gigukod na siya sa mga suspects niya (unya) didto nitago but naabtan siya. Nakit-an and mao tong gipusil,” he said. 

(Actually, she hid behind (the pick-up truck). He was chased by the suspects (and) she hid there, but they found where she was hiding and they shot her dead.)

Personnel from the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) recovered six empty shells of .45 bullets from the crime scene. /dbs