Scavenger kills fellow scavenger during drinking session in Mandaue

A 33-year-old scavenger lies dead on the sidewalk after he was stabbed dead by his fellow scavenger along Ouano Avenue, Mandaue CIty on Monday afternoon, May 11, 2020. | Contributed Photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A drinking session gone wrong ended in the fatal stabbing of a scavenger in Mandaue City at past 2 p.m. on Monday, May 11, 2020.

Marco Sanchez, 33 of Talisay City, Cebu, a scavenger, was arrested after he stabbed dead a fellow scavenger, Rotche Gabuya, of Carcar City, during a drinking session in Ouano Avenue, Barangay Centro, Mandaue City, said Police Executive Master Sergeant Eduardo Flores of Police Station 1 of the Mandaue City Police Office in a phone interview with CDN Digital.

Flores said that Sanchez and Gabuya let the liquor get to their head and instead of having fun  in the drinking session, it ended with both men attacking each other.

Initial investigation that Sanchez invited Gabuya, who was a fellow scavenger, to a drinking session that day because he allegedly had money earned from his scavenging.

But as the two men got drunk, they started arguing and causing Gabuya to allegedly attack Sanchez with a piece of wood, hitting the latter on the head.

But Sanchez managed to pick another piece of wood on the ground and hit Gabuya with it causing Gabuya to fall on the ground unconscious, but Sanchez was not yet finished.

He allegedly took out a screwdriver he had with him and stabbed the unconscious Gabuya on the chest twice causing his death.

Flores said that when police and emergency responders arrived in the area, Gabuya was already dead.

A few minutes later, they arrested Sanchez, who did not resist arrest.

When asked why he stabbed dead his friend, Sanchez said: “Kay sa akoy mamatay.” 

([I’d rather kill him] than me being killed.)

Flores said that they were readying a homicide case against Sanchez, who was detained at the Police Station 1 detention cell.

Read more: Advisory of Mandaue City on total liquor ban

Flores said that they were also investigating how Sanchez got his liquor when Mandaue City was under a liquor ban, which was part of the measures of the enhanced community quarantine in the city./dbs