CEBU CITY, Philippines—Another public utility jeepney (PUJ) dispatcher was shot dead while sleeping along the sidewalk in D. Jakosalem Street, Barangay Parian, Cebu City, at around 5:40 a.m. on Tuesday, September 17, 2019.
The victim was identified by the residents near the area and other bystanders as a certain “William.”
The victim is the second person to be killed in Barangay Parian in the past week.
Last September 13, Alexander Lastimoso, was also sleeping on the road along Bonifacio Street corner Jakosalem Street when he shot by a certain a “Em-em.”
This is also the second time this month a dispatcher was shot dead while asleep.
Last September 9, a dispatcher, later identified by the police as Marvin Baylon Anabia, was shot along Salinas Drive, Barangay Lahug, Cebu City, while lying on a foam mattress on the sidewalk.
Read: Jeepney dispatcher shot dead in Lahug
Police are still working to determine the identity of the victim, whose body is currently lain in Saint Francies Funeral Homes along N. Bacalso Avenue in Cebu City.
Based on the initial investigation of Parian Police station, an unidentified person arrived in the area and shot the victim several times before boarding a jeepney heading north.
The victim sustained gunshot wounds on the left side of his neck and left part of his chest.
Police found three empty shells and one deformed slug in the scene of the crime.
According to Police Captain Armando Labora, the victim was a well known PUJ dispatcher who sleeps on the sidewalk near a school in the area.
Some residents near the area also claim that the victim was an ex-convict. The police are looking into this claim, which might help them determine the motive of the crime. /bmjo