*Responding police officer, 2 suspects, 3 civilians
killed in failed robbery attempt
by Gregorio G. Deligero
A police officer and five civilians were killed during a shootout between law enforcers and suspected holdup men in Panabo City at high noon yesterday.
Among those killed were two suspects riding in tandem who engaged city police officers in a shootout.
The suspects robbers broke into a commercial establishment in Panabo City, Davao del Norte.
Supt. Marvin Manuel Pepino, Panabo City chief of police, said that two motorcycle-riding suspects, armed with caliber .45 pistols, barged into Yidong Agri Supply, which sells bananas and agricultural supplies, along Park Avocado, Kilometer 31, Cagangohan village at 12:15 p.m. and declared a robbery.
The establishment is owned by Filipino-Chinese Leo Apalie Lai, 28.
Senior Insp. Gretchin Cinco, deputy spokesperson of the Southern Mindanao regional police, initially identified those slain as Dexter Marcellones, one of the two suspects; Edgar Mocos, security guard; Allen Jones Polo, driver; and Irene Zamora, who was taken hostage by the suspects.
Meanwhile, Darios Pilotos, a caretaker for Lai’s warehouse, was rushed to Rivera Hospital after sustaining injuries.
Pepino said that the robbers, who were eventually killed by policemen, took Zamora hostage after taking P900,000 from the establishment. They used Lai’s car as a getaway vehicle but were only able to drive 20 meters from the shop before they were killed by police.
He said that Alampay died from a gunshot wound to the head and that they were still trying to determine who fired the bullet that killed Zamora.
