Seven members of the Ormoc City Police are now in the custody of the Leyte Provincial Police Office after being identified as persons of interest in the recent shooting of Kerwin Espinosa.
In a media briefing held on Friday, PNP Spokesperson PBGen. Jean Fajardo disclosed that the seven police officers were seen in civilian clothing inside the compound where the suspected gunman in the Albuera mayoral candidate shooting was reportedly located.
According to Fajardo’s statement at Camp Crame, initial investigations revealed that a Montero was seen speeding toward the compound shortly after Espinosa and two others were shot.
However, when authorities followed the vehicle, they instead found seven armed police officers from Ormoc at the location in Albuera, raising questions about their unexpected presence in the area.
“What is significant here is ‘yung from the time na umalis ‘yung Montero na iyon, allegedly ay may nakalagay na parang tarpaulin na they made it appear na sila ay supporter ni Mr. Kerwin," said Fajardo.
"But immediately after the shooting incident [ay] nagmamadaling umalis itong Montero na ito at nahabol iyon. Naituro sila na pumasok sa compound na iyon," she added.
The absence of evidence, which suggested a close-range shooting, led authorities to consider the possibility that Espinosa was shot by a sniper.
Six Armalite rifles recovered from the persons of interest have been submitted for ballistic examination. Two firearms were registered to ranking officers, while the other five were issued to non-officers whose ranks have not been disclosed.
