Albayalde says Halili had dispute with former general
Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Oscar Albayalde said Tanuan City Mayor Antonio Halili had a dispute with a former general.
“Land dispute is one of the motives that we are looking at, because from what I know we are looking at three possible motives there. One is the shame campaign that he did before, and what you have said that he has a dispute with a former high ranking general and his alleged involvement on illegal drugs,” he said.
Albayalde did not say if the former high-ranking general belongs to the police or the military.
“I cannot say if he is a policeman or a member of the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines)… That is part of the investigation actually,” he said.
Albayalde did not give details on the alleged dispute between Halili and the former general.
“I am not sure on what is really the cause of their dispute,” he said.
As part of the ongoing investigation of the killing of Halili, authorities re-enacted the incident Thursday.
Chief Supt Edward Carranza, acting Calabarzon regional director, said the re-enactment was done at ly 8:10 am, the same time Halili was shot during the flag-raising ceremony at New City Hall in Barangay Natatas, Tanauan City on Monday.
Carranza said “according to the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO), the distance of the gunman and the position of Mayor Halili is about 76.8 meters on aerial distance using a range finder.”
“Further, the position of the firearm has a negative one to two degrees (1-2°) depression with reference to the horizontal ground,” he said.
“The gunman is higher than the position of the mayor. It is the best advantage position of the gunman from the position of the mayor,” he added.
Carranza said the re-enactment aims to establish the perforation of the bullet which killed Halili.
“With the distance of 76.8 meters, an ordinary marksman or a person who is knowledgeable on handling firearms can execute such act,” he said.
“Based on the investigation and the re-enactment, the mayor became an easy target considering that the mayor was in the flag raising ( ceremony) and (standing) still,” he said.
Carranza also mentioned that the Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) Halili “has established three persons of interest and is continuously securing CCTV footages for possible identification of suspects.”
“After the re-enactment the personnel of SOCO 4A with the use of a metal detector searched the area where the gunman took position. After a thorough search, a cartridge case from an unknown caliber was recovered,” he said.
The empty shell will be subjected to firearms identification and ballistic examination, Carranza added.
Carranza said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) regional director Rustico Vigilia andhis staff observed the re-enactment.
“According to Atty. Vigilia they are having their own independent and parallel investigation to support and assist the PNP to uncover the motive and identity of the suspects,” he said. Robina Asido/DMS
