Vendetta angle probed in businessman’s slay

The police are investigating the possibility that the killing of a businessman in Marikina City last week was carried out by someone who had a grudge against him.

Senior Insp. Eduardo Cayetano, Marikina police investigation chief, said that Rommel Palomares, 43, probably made enemies because of “his strong personality.”

According to Cayetano, the victim was known to get into trouble with other people although he would avoid the consequences of his action because of his “connections.”

For example, Palomares was previously accused of firing his unregistered .45-caliber pistol but no charges were filed against him, the police official said.

Cayetano added that it was not a farfetched possibility that the victim’s killer was among the people he had ticked off.

“That’s the angle we’re looking at because there was nothing wrong with his business,” he told the Inquirer.

Palomares died on the spot after he was shot by a man while he was eating in a canteen on Sumulong Highway around 1 a.m. last Sunday. The gunman and a lookout then escaped on a motorcycle.

The shooting took place a few meters away from Budoy Comedy Bar which he owned. Retrieved from the crime scene was a slug from a .45-caliber pistol.

Cayetano said that a witness had told the police that the gunman was based in the area where the victim lived. Palomares lived in Barangay Toro, Quezon City.

The police clarified, however, that they were still verifying this information.