Passenger kills jeep conductor

A jeepney conductor was stabbed dead by a passenger whom he confronted for not paying fare Wednesday night in barangay Centro, Mandaue City.

Edmund Encular, a native of Barili town, Cebu, died on the spot with stab wounds in the chest and arms.

The suspect, Bobby Dawal, a 44-year-old resident of barangay Opao, Mandaue, was arrested shortly after the incident. The suspect was drunk during the attack, police said.

Police said Dawal was one of the passemgers of a jeepney where Encular was the conductor.

Dawal tried to disembark at the corner of Zamora and B. Ceniza Streets but Encular stopped him and asked for the passenger’s fare.

Encular persisted in collecting fare from the suspect after another passenger tipped him off that Dawal didn’t pay his fare yet.

The two men ended up arguing until Encular punched Dawal, who retaliated by repeatedly stabbing Encular.

Dawal casually walked toward S.B. Cabahug Street after the scuffle.

Responding policemen cornered Dawal about 300 meters from the crime scene. A knife was recovered from the suspect’s possession, police said.

The victim was already dead when paramedics from the Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation arrived.

The suspect was brought to a hospital where he tested positive for alcohol use.

A charge of homicide will be filed against the suspect, police said.