Drug suspect’s 1st Zumba dance was also his last

A drug suspect, one of the hundreds in Pasig City who had surrendered to the police and were made to join a Zumba dance fitness session to signify their intention to change their ways, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen shortly past midnight on Thursday.

Jeffrey Oczon, 30, was killed in an ambush staged by six assailants on four motorcycles who cornered him on Dela Paz Ville, Nagpayong II, in Barangay Pinagbuhatan, the Pasig police said.

Senior Supt. Orlando Yebra Jr., the city police chief, said Oczon was on Pinagbuhatan’s list of known pushers.

He was killed not far from his house, where his mother Adelfa heard several gunshots and rushed out to see her son lying bloodied on the ground. In an interview, the grieving Adelfa said her son earlier surrendered to the police under the Oplan Tokhang campaign.

The case investigator, PO2 Danilo Damasco, recalled that Oczon was among the drug suspects who on Sunday showed up for a Zumba fitness program in their village.

Oczon was the 27th victim of extrajudicial killings recorded by the Eastern Police District since July 1, attacks seen to be inspired by President Duterte’s campaign pledge to wage a bloody war on illegal drugs. The EPD covers the cities of Pasig, San Juan, Marikina and Mandaluyong.

The EPD said it had arrested 197 people in the 101 antidrug operations conducted in the same period. Nine suspects targeted in those operations were shot dead by the police because they allegedly fought back.

Also this week in Pasig, another man who, like Oczon, earlier presented himself to the police because he was on their drug watch list was shot dead by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Barangay Rosario on Wednesday morning.

Fernando Alfonso, 51, was shot thrice in the head while on a bike along Bernal Street.

RELATED VIDEOS