A police line is set up around the car where Lawyer Rex Fernandez was killed by a lone gunman on a street in Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City on August 26. | CDN Digital photo by Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Rosinda Acot, one of five persons of interest in the killing of Lawyer Rex Fernandez, has been taken off the list after she coordinated with investigators and issued a statement about the lawyer’s killing.
Acot was the woman, seen by witnesses who disembarked from Fernandez’s car after the lawyer was shot several times by an unidentified assailant on August 26 in Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Wilbert Parilla, deputy director for operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said that Acot coordinated with the Special Investigation Task Group created to investigate the killing of Lawyer Fernandez and has already given her statement.
Acot was included in the list of persons of inteCCPOrest after she hesitated at first to cooperate with the police investigation.
READ: Real estate agent a ‘person of interest’ in lawyers killing
According to Parilla, Acot said that she knew Fernandez since he was her client after the latter bought a unit from a condominium in Cebu City.
Parilla added that they already have Fernandez’s itinerary on that day but refused to disclose it yet pending the ongoing investigation.
After Acot was eliminated from the list, Parilla said that they will continue to coordinate with at least four persons that Fernandez mentioned in his Facebook post last August 19 as the ones who wished him dead.
This despite the denial of the condominium management over insinuations linking them to Fernandez’s death.
Parilla again stressed that ‘persons of interest’ are not suspects but are those who might have knowledge about the incident who could help in the investigation.
However, in some circumstances, persons of interest can also become suspects, added Parilla.
The top police official said they have received additional material evidence from Acot including the cellphone believed to be owned by the slain lawyer. The phone was reportedly taken by her after she disembarked from the car.
Parilla added that according to Acot, she took the phone to secure it as there were no investigators yet at the crime scene.
However, Parilla said that they will turn over the cellphone to the Regional Anti-Cyber Crime Unit (RACU-7) for investigation.
When asked if there is a possibility that the phone’s entries have been tampered with, Parilla said that RACU-7 has the capacity to retrieve messages even if these were already deleted.
Parilla also revealed that they have also requested RACU-7 to enhance the footage they got from security cameras at the crime scene to help identify the assailant.
READ: Fernandez names possible killers in FB post, police form SITG