Onlookers crowd the crime scene in Barangay Perrelos in Carcar City. | Contributed photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Carcar City police have identified the man, who was shot dead Saturday night, Nov. 5, while in Sitio Nangkaan, Barangay Perrelos in the said city.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Ardioleto Cabagnot, chief of Carcar City Police Station, identified the victim as Brian Pedrano, a 45-year-old seaman and a native of Palompon in Leyte province.
Cabagnot said they were able to identify the victim from the boat ticket which they found in his possession.
They also managed to reach out to his family after they found the Facebook account of one of his relatives whom they asked to verify Pedrano’s identity and provide documents and photos of him.
However, they are yet to determine what may have caused his killing and why he was in Sitio Nangkaan Saturday night.
Cabagnot said they are now in contact with Pedrano’s sibling, who resides in Consolacion town in northern Cebu, to get additional information on they victim as they also hope to determine the possible motive in his killing.
“Naa ni siyay igsuon sa Consolacion. Nagpaabot pami sa igsuon kay para makakuha sa detalye. Mao pa na amoang detalye, identity ug ang area. Amoa pani subayon nganong naabot og Carcar ni sya,” Cabagnot said.
(He has a sibling who resides in Consolacion. We are still waiting for the sibling to provide additional information. So, far the information that we have gathered are on his identity and the place where the came from. We are yet to determine why he was in Carcar.)
Based on their initial investigation and the accounts of the residents in the area, the victim was seen talking to another person in a poorly lit area in Sitio Nangkaan shortly before he was shot dead.
“Naay usa ka motor nag standby ga estorya ni sila. Naay usa naas atbang ga flashlight. Base sa testimony, wala silay nakita nga commotion or galalis. Typical lang nga ga storyaan. Nakurat lang sila nga naay buto-buto,” Cabagnot said.
(He was [seen] talking to a man who was on a motorcycle. Another one who was carrying a flashlight was [standing] across them. Based on the testimony [of witnesses], they did not hear any argument or [see any] commotion. They were just talking. That is why they were surprised when they heard gun bursts.)
“Base sa batan-un, naa gyud daw gihikap hikap tong gunman unya nanawag pa og cellphone. Murag lawm-lawm ning hitaboa kay tulo man jod ka bala. Mura man og gisiguro kay og tulis pani, usa ra unta ni or duha,” Cabagnot said.
(According to a young witness, he saw the gunman touch something as he was making a call on his cellphone [after the shooting incident.]. We could only suspect that this involves something serious because the victim had three bullet wounds [on his body]. It seems that the gunman wanted to make sure that he is already dead because it this were a mere robbery, he could have just fired a shot or two.)
Police found one bullet wound at the back of Pedrano’s neck and two others on his chest, all coming from a .45 caliber.
On Saturday night, a concerned citizen told CDN Digital that they heard four gun bursts in the area.
Accordingly to the citizen, the still unidentified gunman shot Pedrano and allegedly took his motorcycle.
Cabagnot said they will consider all possible motives in their ongoing investigation. They will also continue to talk with Pedrano’s relatives hoping to get additional information from them.
RELATED STORIES:
Dead man with several stab wounds, whose throat was cut, found in Carcar
Social media helped in identifying alleged salvage victim in Consolacion
/dcb