Politics eyed in killing of brgy chair in Ormoc

ORMOC CITY – Authorities are looking into politics, among other possible motives, in the killing of a barangay captain in Ormoc City Friday evening.

There is no lead yet however as to the identities of the perpetrators but a hot pursuit operation has been carried out since the brutal incident.

Initial police investigation identified the victim as 57-year-old Patricio Laude, a first-term chairman of Barangay Catmon, Ormoc City, who was once a kagawad of the same village.

Unidentified gunmen shot Laude dead at around 7 p.m. on February 16 near the house of his kagawad, 47-year-old Christopher Casinong, who was also wounded.

Casinong was brought to a hospital for treatment and is now in stable condition, but there were no reports if he was able to identify the gunmen or had an idea on the motive and the mastermind behind the shooting.

Police Brigadier General Reynaldo Pawid, regional director of the Police Regional Office-8, immediately ordered a thorough investigation of the killing, and gathering of evidences, while a hot pursuit operation is being conducted alongside the putting up of checkpoints at possible escape routes.

So far, there were no other details from the police over the incident, but Pawid assured the public that the police are doing their best to resolve this incident with the arrest of the perpetrators.

City Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez, for her part, had not issued any statement yet on this latest shooting incident, which is now part of a series of killing around the city and the entire 3rd and 4th districts of Leyte early this year.

Leyte Governor Jericho “Icot” Petilla earlier said he has been alarmed of these violent incidents that have broken the otherwise peaceful and orderly condition of the province, adding that he would not allow politics to be the trigger point of it all. -