Batad mayor condemns killing of Bantay Dagat commander
An appeal has now been made by Batad Mayor Pedro Alarcon for police to hasten investigation on the killing of Reynaldo "Dandoy" Villa Sr., a Bantay-Dagat commander here.
This, as the mayor strongly condemned the incident saying such violence has no place in Batad's quiet and peaceful town.
In an interview, Mayor Alarcon told The News Today (TNT) that efforts from his end are underway to ensure prompt resolution of the Villa slay. And he called on Batad residents to cooperate withauthorities in order tohelp shed light on the events surrounding the crime.
Villa was killed by a yet to be identified assailant inside the Bantay Dagat detachment Sunday evening.He succumbed to a gunshot wound when shot at close range. Villa's Bantay Dagat group reports directly to Governor Niel Tupas Sr. and the governor's eyes and ears on fishing operations in this northern Iloilo town.
"Ginapalab-ot ko gid ang akon pagbuylog sa natabo (I extend my sympathy on what occured)," Mayor Alarcon began. "Ginasalig naton sa kapulisan ang ini nga insidente. Hatagan naton sang tini-on ang otoridad agud masolbar ang ini nga kaso (We entrust this incident to the police. Let us give our authorities the time to solve the case)."
Mayor Alarcon further issued an appeal to political rivals not to add further pain to the Villa family by using the incident to create further controversies. While talks abound questioning the credibility of Villa as Bantay-Dagat commander, Mayor Alarcon refused to comment saying he givesdue respect to the grieving family.
Capitol sources said that Villa has since been a “marked man” due to his Bantay-Dagat activities.