ONE DOWN

Robbery suspect Nestor Benavente is treated for a gunshot wound. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

Tommy O ready to give P55K reward

A policeman who allegedly shot dead a suspected robber and injured another yesterday will get a hefty P55,000 reward from Cebu City Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña.

“Ang kanang wa mamatay, 5 mil ra na, ang patay P50,000, so next time para makatilaw og P50T, kinahanglan patay,” Osmeña said.

(He will get only P5,000 for the wounded suspect, but for the suspect who was shot dead, he gets P50,000, so next time, in order to get P50,000, the suspect should be killed.)

To ensure that the criminals will be killed, Osmeña said, the policemen must practice shooting.

“So the police should practice shooting,” he said.

Witnesses said a man, later identified as PO3 Julius Regis, an operative of the City Intelligence Branch (CIB), shot three men on board a motorcycle, in a hot pursuit operation, right at the foot of the flyover on Archbishop Reyes Avenue outside the Cebu Business Park. Regis couldn’t be immediately identified as a policeman because he was wearing civilian clothes.

Police claimed that the three men were responsible for a daylight heist along Gorordo Avenue, victimizing a 65-year-old woman and her four-year-old grandchild who were aboard a 04C jeepney.

STATUS

Supt. George Ylanan, Cebu City deputy chief for operations, during a press briefing, told reporters that Armand de la Cerna, a resident of Cogon, Ozamis City, was pronounced dead on arrival at the Perpetual Succor Hospital. He sustained multiple gunshot wounds in his armpit and back.

Personnel at the Emergency Room of the hospital, however, would not confirm the status of de la Cerna, but merely said he was brought to the Operating Room at 3 p.m. yesterday, in critical condition. They would not disclose the status of the suspect.

Another call to the Operating Room late last night revealed that de la Cerna was still inside the OR and that there were policemen waiting outside the OR.

CDN tried to talk to the police on the phone but the line was held for some time and then the call was just dropped.

Osmeña, in a separate interview, said that the police operation resulted in the death of one of the suspects.

His companion, Nestor Benavente, sustained a gunshot wound on his shoulder and is being treated at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC).

The driver of the motorcycle remains unidentified.

A .45 caliber pistol and other items recovered from the site of the shooting incident. Police recovered a backpack and bag that were allegedly taken from the robbery victims. (CDN PHOTO APPLE MAE TA-AS)

Ylanan also claimed that officials from the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) suspected that Benaventa could be among those who robbed the Super Metro Gaisano in Carcar City last month.

“We are now comparing his photo to a screen shot from the CCTV of the robbery in Carcar City. We are still verifying the matter but initial comparison shows they have the same facial features,” said Supt. Ylanan.

He said Benavente was the one who identified the dead body as de la Cerna and that both of them hail from Ozamis City.

REWARD

The quick response by the police to the robbery alarm came just a day after Osmeña announced that he would give a reward of P50,000 for every drug lord or any criminal who is killed.

Prior to the incident, Police Regional Office Director Chief Supt. Patrocinio Comendador told reporters that the reward offer was a “positive development” especially that they are running after hardened criminals.

Osmeña assured that the money will not come from Cebu City Hall funds.

Asked if the reward would be taken from his own pocket, Osmeña replied, “It’s none of your business”.

At a later interview, Osmeña again refused to identify the source of the cash reward and then repeated that “it’s none of your business.”

Osmeña said it is his job to protect the people and even if his term has yet to start, he will start the move to ensure the city’s peace and order.

LEGAL WAY

Osmeña said Regis can get the cash reward because he neutralized the suspect “in a legal way”. He said the cash reward can only be given when a policeman or anyone kills a criminal in a legal way.

He said his offer is not only for policemen but even barangay tanods or civilians who can justify the killing of a suspected criminal.

As an example of a “legal” killing, Osmeña said, “Naay tulis, they come to the defense, then they shoot the robber.”

“Bisan tanod o civilian basta legal,” he added.

But Osmeña said no reward will be given if the suspected criminal is just arrested, saying that’s the job of the police, to arrest a suspect.

The release of the reward to Regis will prove one thing: “Basta akong ipakita sa mga tawo ha . . . sugod karon, Osmeña 1, Duterte 0,” Osmeña laughed.

(I will show the people, that starting now, the scorecard is Osmeña 1, Duterte 0.)

He was understood to have referred to the vigilante killings linked to Davao Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, the newly elected president of the country.

DENOUNCE

Pro-life advocate Dr. Rene Bullecer denounced Osmeña’s offer of reward.

“Cebu City is the cradle of Christianity in the Far East. His (Osmeña) plan is contrary to Christian ethics and morality,” he said.

“We won’t really be sure if the person killed is the perpetrator of the crime unless we go through the legal process,” Bullecer, Human Life International country director, said as he suggested the strengthening and implementation of current laws instead of employing extra-judicial means.
Human Rights lawyer Democrito Barcenas shared Bullecer’s sentiments.

“I hope Tommy will not violate human rights. I don’t know how he will do it without violating due process of law. I hope he will seek the advice of his lawyers,” Barcenas said.

VIGILANTISM

Asked about the possibility that this could trigger vigilantism in the city, the mayor-elect said it’s not his problem, but the problem of the criminals (all criminal elements: drug dealer, rapist, robber, killer, etc.).

He instead asked criminals to leave Cebu City with a warning that he is serious in the campaign against criminality.

“Dili man na akong problema, mao na ang problema sa mga badlongon. So mas maayo na lang nga mobalhin sila sa laing lugar,” Osmeña said.

(That’s no longer my problem. It would be better if the criminals go somewhere else.)

REGIS

A witness to the incident, Ernie Andrino, was cleaning glass panels inside a bank located across the area where the shooting took place.

He said he was shocked when a lone motorcycle rider pulled out a gun and shot the three men.

“The two motorcycles were in a convoy but a taxi entered so the motorcycle with the passengers slowed down, and the one riding alone in the other motorcycle pulled out a gun and it was then that gunfire ensued,” he said in Cebuano.

The lone rider was PO3 Regis. He allegedly alighted from his motorcycle, went near the three men and shot the tire of the motorcycle but hit de la Cerna, who was riding at the edge, after the latter allegedly pulled out his own gun.

Benavente was also hit but managed to flee aboard a 13C jeepney bound for Talamban and alighted at a private subdivision in Banilad, where he was later arrested.

“A concerned citizen reported to us that he was wounded but wouldn’t let ERUF volunteers bring him to any hospital but instead asked to be brought directly to the pier,” said Chief Insp. Wildemar Tiu.

He said Benavente got inside a house in the subdivision.

“Maybe he was looking for a place to hide. When he was brought to the hospital, we went there but we did not recover any firearm. But I suspected that he was really armed so we went back to the the subdivision and found a 9mm in a grassy area.

ROBBERY

The alleged robbery victim, 65-year-old Cristita Bernil Barbosa, said two of the suspects boarded the jeepney and grabbed her bag while her grandchild was drinking milk on her lap.

“Out of fear, I gave my bag and even the knapsack of my grandchild as well as the groceries I bought,” Barbosa said.

She said the robbers spoke in Tagalog. According to Barbosa, the traffic lights were on red near the KIA showroom along Gorordo Avenue when the heist happened. The motorcycle driver blocked the exit of the jeepney.

Regis, who was on his way home from a hearing, noticed the commotion and asked the passengers what happened.

“When the men left, I asked what happened and when I learned it was a robbery, I gave chase until we reached Ayala,” Regis said in Cebuano.

The three men passed Asilo and made a U-turn at a gasoline station going to Archbishop Reyes Avenue.

“They slowed down so I alighted my motorcycle and introduced myself to them as a police officer. But the one sitting on the edge pulled out a gun so I had to shoot first. I also shot the arm of the one next to him to neutralize him but he was able to board a jeepney,” Regis said.