Police tightens border watch in Basilan for assailants of Ateneo shooter's father

PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief, Gen. Vicente Danao Jr. on Saturday, ordered a tight watch in Lamitan City, Basilan for the killers of the father of the main suspect in the shooting at the Ateneo de Manila University last week that led to the deaths of three people.

Following a directive from Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos, Danao said he had ordered his men to beef up security on the borders to halt the escape of the assailants.

Rolando Yumol, 69, father of Dr. Chiao Tiao Yumol who shot and killed former Lamitan mayor Rosita Furigay, her aide and a security guard during a graduation ceremony at the school's campus last July 24, was gunned down just outside his residence also in Lamitan, early Friday morning.

PNP's chief public information officer, BGen. Roderick Alba, doused speculation that the killing was related to the Ateneo incident.

Danao said police have been deployed in checkpoints to monitor suspected persons attempting to pass through.

"Let the probe take its course. We need concrete proof to establish the motive of the crime killing of Mr. Rolando Yumol," Danao said.

Alba, for his part, said the national police is also asking for the public's cooperation in informing law enforcers of suspicious looking individuals in their communities.

The younger Yumol, meanwhile, remains detained at the Quezon City Police District headquarters in Camp Karingal while waiting for a commitment order before his transfer to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) detention facility, according to Jail warden Supt. Michelle Ng-Bonto.

The suspect, 38, a doctor, was formally charged with three counts of murder for the killing of Furigay, her executive assistant and long-time aide Victor Capistrano and campus security guard Jeneven Bandiala, 35, who tried to stop him.

Source: TheManila Times