P2M bounty for arrest of Nicole’s killer
Cayetano wants master plan to prevent gun-related violence
PRESIDENT Benigno C. Aquino III has offered a P2-million reward for any information “leading to the arrest and conviction” of the killer of seven-year-old Stephanie Nicole Ella, who was killed by a stray bullet during last New Year’s Eve revelry.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte confirmed that the President has set the bounty, adding that he is determined to bring justice to the young girl.
“I can confirm that. The President mentioned it last Thursday in his dialogue with the annual conference of the RMN station managers…It was P2 million ‘for the information leading to the arrest and conviction’ as stated by the President,” Valte said.
She said President Aquino is, so far, happy with the progress of the case and he is confident that the case will be resolved soon.
“The President had begged off from mentioning the details so as not to tip off the subject. But the progress of the case has been good,” she said.
Ella was laid to rest on Saturday in Norzagaray, Bulacan.
She died last Jan. 2 after suffering from cardiac arrest as she slipped into a coma when she was hit by a stray bullet outside their home in Caloocan while watching fireworks last New Year’s Eve. Her death triggered debate on stricter gun control.
President Aquino earlier junked the proposal of total gun ban noting that it will not solve criminality in the country.
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano is urging the government to come up with a “master plan” that focuses on crime prevention in re- sponse to the recent spate of gunrelated violence in the country.
”We have to approach it holistically,” Cayetano said, referring to the shootout in Atimonan, Quezon, the hostage-taking incident in Kawit, Cavite and the deaths of children due to indiscriminate firing during the New Year’s Eve revelry.
Cayetano suggested that law enforcers from the National Bureau of Investigation, the police, and the military and those involved in peace and order situations to come up with a master plan.
“Remember, we’re only talking about solving a couple of crimes that represent so much of what’s happening in the country. And the cru- cial thing is finding out how we can prevent them,” he added
The senator suggested that the government actively push for the installation of more closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV) as a means to eliminate the problem of understaffing in law enforcement agencies.
“Every CCTV camera you install is almost equivalent to having 10 to 20 policemen securing that area covered by the camera because it multiplies the ability of the police to monitor the situation,” he said.
The Senate minority leader used malls with CCTVs as proof of the merit of this suggestion as he noted the difference in the inci- dence of crimes in these establishments when compared to marketplaces with no CCTVs.
“Why are there lower incidences of stealing and robbery in malls as compared to market places? It’s not because the people are different. People of all walks of life go to the same mall. It’s because they know that someone is monitoring them and that there are CCTVs,” he said.
Cayetano also pointed out that the government should invest in upgrading the quality of the country’s crime labs to aid in gathering evidence and, therefore, speeding up the process of obtaining justice for crime victims. (JB/Sunnex/