A pregnant woman was shot dead by still unidentified gunman on Saturday evening, Oct. 22, in Barangay Tunghaan in Minglanilla town. | Photo of Minglanilla PS
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A 26-year-old pregnant woman was shot dead while talking to a neighbor in Sitio Estaka, Barangay Tunghaan in Minglanilla town in southern Cebu on Saturday evening, Oct. 22.
Police Lieutenant Crisanto Arreglo, deputy chief of police of Minglanilla Police Station, said that they still had no identity yet of the gunman but they were gathering pieces of evidence that could shed light to the killing of Noraliza Awayas, 26, who was five-months pregnant.
Awayas was shot twice on the right side of her head with a .45 caliber pistol and she was shot while talking to her neighbor.
LOOK: Pregnant woman killed in Minglanilla, Cebu
In an interview, Arreglo said that while Awayas and her neighbor were talking just outside the neighbor’s house, a man arrived and grabbed the victim’s cellphone.
After taking the cellphone of Awayas, the gunman then shot her twice. The gunman then tried to shoot Awayas’ neighbor, but she had managed to hide at that time.
After the shooting, the gunman fired a shot in the air to warn Awayas neighbors not to follow him as he left the area.
“Sa dihang nagbuto-buto na, ang silingan nanggawas mao na lang ilahang nakit-an nga nagdagan ang gunman pero di sila kaila kay nag jacket siya then nagmask ug nagwear og gloves…prior sa pagdagan, nagpabuto pa ni siya pataas so buot pasabot, way pasundon,” Arreglo said.
(When there were shots fired, the other neighbors went out and then they saw the gunman running away but they could not recognize him because he was wearing a jacket, a face mask and he was wearing gloves…and before he ran, he fired in the air as warning that nobody should follow him.)
The Minglanilla police chief said that suspect was alone when he shot Awayas, but some residents also claimed that there was a motorcycle waiting outside the area.
However, Arreglo said that they had yet to verify this claim.
He said they were coordinating with the traffic command of Minglanilla to check if there were security cameras that caught the gunman when he fled.
He also said that they did not have any motive for the killing yet but they were pursuing a lead, which he refused to elaborate.
The police said that two weeks prior to her killing, Awayas neighbor told police that Awayas, sort of, bid goodbye and told her to take care of her two children if ever she would no longer be alive by then.
READ: Woman shot dead in Cebu City street; police eye drugs as possible motive in attack