Official rules out overkill in death of four suspected robbers
The four suspected robbers who died in a shoot-out with the police were shot from a distance, an indication which ruled out overkill insinuations.
Supt. Owen Lebaquin of the Police Crime Laboratory said “there were no signs” that the victims were shot in close range. They have sustained two to three gunshot wounds on the head and chest.
Of the four victims, only three were identified by the police. They were Raymond Romawak, Eric Alminar and Sonny Madriaga all of Bagong Silang, Caloocan.
The quartet died after they figured in a shoot out in a joint police operation of the 608th Provincial Mobile Group, Sara municipal police station and Anilao police station at the Nipa Bay Resort in the town of Anilao .
The other victims remain unidentified. No identification paper was recovered in his body unlike his three companions who carried with them their driver’s licenses.
Lebaquin conducted an autopsy on the bodies of the four victims. He believes the fatalities are “hardened criminals” because of the tattoo on the arms and back portion of their bodies. One of the victims bore a tattoo of a Sigue-Sigue Sputnik Gang while another one has a tattoo of a Commando Group.
He theorized the victims were imprisoned at the Manila City Jail because of the presence of tattoos on the different parts of their bodies. Inmates, normally have tattoos on their body to distinguish themselves from the various prisoners serving their jail terms.
According to Supt. Ipil Dueñas, head of the 608th PMG, they have already sent somebody to Manila to check on the identities of the suspects and their association to the different gangs.
He has yet to receive official report from the Northern Police District which detailed other holdings of the victims. However, he suspects the victims have purpose in coming to Iloilo .
Earlier, former IPPO director Ricardo de la Paz said the suspects are planning to rob a bank in the town of Sara.
Dueñas said the suspects might have undermined the police capabilities of the Iloilo cops and had a side trip here. He also suspects the victims were testing the waters on whether they can execute their plans seeing the laxity on the part of the police. Unluckily, they died here.
The families of the victims were already notified in CAMANAVA (Caloocan , Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela). However, no one arrived in Iloilo to claim the dead bodies of the victims. The bodies of the victims would be buried after one week, said Dueñas.