New mayor backs bounty for Joavan

A BOUNTY will be put up for the capture of Joavan Fernandez, adopted son of outgoing Talisay City Mayor Socrates Fernandez.
In a phone interview, Talisay City Mayor-elect Johnny V. delos Reyes said  he or other  city residents can offer the reward.
De los Reyes, who promised in his campaign to  show that “the rule of law” will be followed,  didn’t say how much he would stake for a bounty but said he doesn’t want his administration to be bogged down by Joavan’s misadventures.
“Kung naminaw man si Mayor Soc, aw mas maayo pa nga i-surrender nana niya ang iyang anak kaysa mamatay pa na (If Mayor Soc Fernandez is listening, it’s better if he surrenders his son rather than let him  die),” he said, referring to a police manhunt for the suspect.
The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) said it won’t place a bounty on Joavan just yet.
“Joavan is facing charges of frustrated murder and not a murder case which qualifies for a bounty,” said Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, Cebu provincial police chief.
The mayor-elect  said he’s encouraging any person to put up a bounty o speed up the search.
Joavan, who is also facing a case for illegal possession of a gun and grenade, was last   spotted by police in a Lapu-Lapu City beach resort.
He escaped pursuing police, who managed to arrest two of his companions. He was declared public enemy No.1 after he escaped from the Talisay City jail.
Comendador said police  believe Joavan has not yet left Cebu but instead keeps moving from one area to another to evade arrest. Correspondents Gabriel C. Bonjoc and Christine Emily L. Pantaleon