P100-K bounty up for Makati shooter

MAKATI Mayor Romulo “Kid” Peña has offered a P100,000 reward for anyone who can provide information on the whereabouts of a barangay worker who reportedly killed two people—one of them a 7-year-old boy—when he opened fire on a group of revelers on New Year’s Day.

In a text message to the Inquirer Monday, Peña said he was putting up the bounty to help capture Raymundo Liza, a member of the local Bantay Bayan or civilian security unit in the barangay where the shooting occurred.

Liza escaped after he allegedly shot and killed John Edward Pascual and Mark Anthony Diego, aged seven, around 12:20 a.m. on Jan. 1 on Bulusan Street, Barangay Southside in Makati City.

Pascual, a resident of Pasay City who was visiting the area, was drinking with several men when Liza, whom witnesses had described as drunk, opened fire on the group.

Pascual was hit in the chest and abdomen while Diego, who was playing nearby, was struck in the back of the head.

The boy died later that night while Pascual succumbed to his injuries on Saturday morning.

LIZA

“We want to bring justice to the families of the victims even though the case has been transferred to the custody of Taguig City,” Peña said.

The Taguig police took over the case from Makati policemen after jurisdictional matters were cleared up. The Makati City police responded first on the assumption that the area was under their jurisdiction.

Diego’s father, also named Mark Anthony, was one of the men drinking with Pascual when the shooting occurred. He told the Inquirer that Peña had visited his son while he was confined at the Ospital ng Makati and offered financial help for the victim’s hospital expenses.

Aside from putting up the bounty for Liza’s capture, the Makati City government has also said it would look into his status as a member of the local Bantay Bayan.

Based on Barangay Southside records, the suspect has been suspended from service since Dec. 7 because of his involvement in another shooting incident.

The older Diego said that Liza was known to roam the barangay carrying a gun which was reportedly borrowed from his cousin.

“The leaders in our [barangay knew of this] so we were surprised it took them so long [to place him under suspension],” he added.

Liza, who lived just two houses away from the crime scene, immediately packed up his belongings and left the area with his wife after the shooting, according to Taguig City police chief Senior Supt. Arthur Felix Asis.

The suspect’s relatives, however, have agreed to help authorities track him down, Asis said. He added that the manhunt for Liza was concentrated in three areas but did not give more details to avoid jeopardizing the ongoing manhunt.