1 of 7 killings ‘mistaken identity’

3 persons dead in shootings; of 7 incidents, 6 involved motorcycle-riding gunmen

IT was a mistaken identity for one of the victims of the seven shootings that occurred within nine hours yesterday.

Three persons were dead in the shootings. Three of the cases were drug-related, SPO2 Ruth Bongo-Violango, of the Homicide Section, said.

“Nakabati man ang biktima nga niingon ang nagpusil niya nga, ‘Uy di man ni mao,’ (The victim heard the gunman say ‘This is not the one’),” Violango said.

Of the seven incidents, six involved motorcycleriding gunmen while the other suspect was a barangay tanod.

At 8 p.m. last Sunday, Rolito Ordinarya, 53, a driver, was shot in the mouth on the intersection of Panganiban and Magallanes Sts., in Barangay Pahina.

The victim saw two masked men approaching him. The passenger mistook him for somebody else, he said.

After he fell, the assailants sped off only to return to pick up something they had left behind after the shooting.

Recovered from the scene were one empty shell of caliber. 45 and two live bullets.

One hour later, in White Road, Barangay Inayawan, Alfred Espinosa, 20, was in critical condition after two men on motorcycles shot him several times while he was having an argument with other scavengers.

He was hit on the face, neck and body and was rushed to the Cebu City Medical Center.

Meanwhile, a barangay tanod of Ermita shot Fernando “Toti” Cuerbo, 40, in the forehead while he was sleeping on a wooden bed in Sitio Warwick at 11:30 p.m.

The victim’s younger sister shouted for help to nearby police personnel when she saw what happened to Cuerbo.

Police identified the gunman as Obet Rosada, a barangay tanod who remains at large.

Carbon Police are still conducting a manhunt for Rosada.

In a separate incident, a drug user who was an Oplan Tokhang personality was shot dead by an unidentified gunman in Sitio Fatima, Barangay Bulacao at 12:10 a.m. yesterday.

According to Violango, Clark “Topyak” Alviola, 30, was already advised to submit himself to Tokhang but he ignored them.

While he was walking on an alley at dawn yesterday, a gunman shot him from behind.

“Gipa- surrender ni siya pero wala man siya mosurrender (He was told to surrender but he didn’t),” Violango said.

Melencio Ramirez, 42, another alleged drug user and runner, was killed by men on a motorcycle.

Ramirez was sitting by the roadside with other bystanders when the gunmen shot him on his arm, stomach and armpit before fleeing from the scene at 1:10 a.m.

He had also refused to surrender in the Tokhang campaign, Violango said.

Two empty shell of caliber 9mm were recovered at the scene.

This, as a stray bullet hit a 16-year-old in Barangay Sambag II. Homicide investigators are still investigating if the two incidents are connected.

On Climaco St., Barangay Pahina Central, an unidentified victim only known as Mr. X was killed by unidentified assailants.

A cardboard with the words “PUSHER AT USER AYAW’G SUNDA!! MAHUROT MO” and shabu were found at the crime scene.