CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
CEBU CITY, Philippines – A retired policeman is the latest victim of a shooting incident involving riding-in-tandem in Cebu City on Friday morning, January 8, 2021.
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Renato Malazarte was killed after still unidentified suspects shot him as he was traversing Cabantan Street in Barangay Luz around 11 a.m., Friday.
Malazarte was rushed to the nearest hospital but physicians declared him dead on arrival. He sustained two gunshot wounds on the head.
In a tally made by Cebu Daily News Digital, Malazarte is the third victim of shooting incidents carried out by still unidentified perpetrators in Cebu City since January 1, 2021.
In an interview with Cebu-based radio station dyHP, Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) director Police Colonel Josefino Ligan, citing witnesses’ accounts, said the gunmen fled the scene on board a black-colored motorcycle.
Ligan said he has also directed investigators from Mabolo Police Station to conduct a deeper probe to shed light on the killing of Malazarte.
“Especially that there are witnesses, we will trace all circumstances surrounding the crime. We will also conduct a background check on the victim,” Ligan said in Cebuano.
According to initial findings from the police, Malazarte retired from service sometime around 2018 to 2019. Shortly before his retirement, the former cop was assigned in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) from 2016 to 2017.
“He also served in the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO),” added Ligan.
Police are still determining possible motives behind the killing as of this posting. /rcg
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