CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) claimed that the Canes couple, who were shot dead at the corner of the intersection of S.B. Cabahug Street and A.C. Cortes Avenue in Barangay Ibabao, Mandaue City were directly connected to “drug queen” Jocelyn Encila.
Encila was dubbed as drug queen since she was arrested on March 3, 2019, after she was caught with 10 kilos of suspected shabu, which had estimated worth of P68 million, in Consolacion town in northern Cebu . She was notorious for having both drug lords and policemen as lovers to protect her drug trade.
Read more: Love and drugs: Encila’s life as Consolacion’s drug queen
Police Colonel Julian Entoma, MCPO director, told CDN-Digital in a phone interview on Monday, April 15, that Fraldine Kate Ramayla Canes, 24, and her husband, Michael Canes, 27, were in their drug matrix of the Rustico Ygot drug syndicate and were in the same level with Encila.
“Nakita gyod namo sa drug watchlist nga nakarga sila. Namention ilang ngalan sa unified drug list sa Mandaue. Sa amo pud drug matrix gitawag sila nga ‘Bossing’ ug ‘Madame,’” said Entoma.
(We saw in our watchlist that they were included. They were mentioned in the unified drug list in Mandaue City. In our drug matrix, as well, they were named as ‘bossing’ and ‘madame’.)
Entoma also affirmed that Michael Canes’ father was already arrested in the past in connection to illegal drugs.
Entoma said that the Canes couple were allegedly called “Madame” and “Bossing” in their alleged drug circle as they allegedly served as transporters of illegal drugs for the Ygot drug group.
Read more: Bilibid prisoner linked to the P190.4M-shabu busts runs Cebu drug ring via the internet
Entoma was referring to the drug group of Rustico Ygot, who is an inmate of the National Bilibid Prison, and was found to be operating the drug operations inside the jail with the arrest of Encila.
He said they were investigating if the couple allegedly used their business, an RTW (ready to wear) clothes business, to allegedly transport drugs.
“Katong ilang gipadala didto sa North Bus, basin naa nay something wrong ato. (The package they sent through the North Bus terminal, there may be something wrong with it),” said Entoma.
However, Entoma said they were not able to intercept the package the couple sent to Bantayan Island prior to their death to check if it allegedly contained any illegal drugs.
Read more: Police: Killing of Mandaue couple could be drug related
Entoma said that they were focusing on trade conflicts between rival drug groups fighting for dominance in the Mandaue market as the possible motive in the killing.
He also said that although the incident seemed like a robbery, the possible motive of the killings might be drug-related.
He also said that it could have been that the shooter found money inside the bag of Fraldine and he took the bag after seeing the money there and finished off Fraldine.
“Pagkita niya nga naay kwarta, iya na lang pud gikuha. (When he saw that there was money inside the bag, he decided to just take it),” said Entoma.
Read more: Medellin fugitive Mercader may be behind murder of Jenalyn Encila — MCPO
Entoma said that one of the persons-of-interest in the incident was Jinnefer Mercader, a high-risk inmate who escaped the Medellin District Jail on March 5.
Mercader, who was a former Borbon town barangay captain, was also considered as one of the possible suspects in the killing of Encila’s sister, Jenalyn Encila, two days after Mercader’s escape on March 6.
Mercader appeared as a hired hitman in the level of Jennalyn Mercado on the drug matrix released by the Regional Intelligence Division of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas.
Read more: Manhunt on for ‘armed and dangerous’ ex-village chief who bolted Medellin, Cebu prison
Entoma said that there might be a connection between Jenalyn Mercado’s attack and the Canes’ couple’s killing since they believed the gun used by the shooter in the latter’s attack were the same one used in Mercado’s killing.
Mercader, however, has remained-at-large to this day.
Entoma said the fatal attack on the couple showed a sneak peek of the possible conflicts within the various drug groups in Mandaue City, in Metro Cebu, or even Cebu province.
He said they would continue to investigate these deaths, which might be the key to breaking or going deeper into the pipeline of the drug trade in Mandaue City./dbs