Love triangle eyed in Bacolod cop’s killing

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines—The police are considering love triangle as the motive in the fatal shooting of a policeman on Tuesday in Barangay (village) Taculing, Bacolod City.

Police Officer 1 Robert Espinosa, 24, of Police Station 1, was heading home to Puentebella Subdivision in Taculing when he was shot in the head at about 2:15 a.m.

The policeman reportedly came from the house of Joshua Ditching, 25, at the City Heights Subdivision in Bacolod City after having some drinks with Ditching’s common-law wife.

Ditching has been accused of shooting the policeman, a charge he has denied.

Ditching claimed that at the time Espinosa was shot, he was at the house of his boss in Barangay 20, attending a despedida party and that he went home at about 8 a.m. Tuesday.

Ditching’s wife told the police that she had asked Espinosa to come to her house and have some drinks with her, her friend and her friend’s boyfriend on Monday night. She said Espinosa left at about 1 a.m. Tuesday.

Ditching admitted that he went to the Police Station 1 because he wanted to talk to Espinosa after his common-law-wife, whose name was not disclosed, failed to go home and was allegedly seen with the policeman.

Ditching said he was not able to talk to Espinosa because the policeman did not report for work that day.

He added that his common-law-wife and Espinosa had known each other for a month.

Chief Inspector Ulysses Ortiz, Station 1 commander, set a time and day for a meeting between Espinosa and Ditching but the policeman did not show up.