Murder suspect falls

A man whom police accused of being a gun-for-hire was arrested in his home in barangay San Roque, Cebu City.

A grenade, a .45 caliber pistol, a .38 revolver and drug-sniffing paraphernalia were allegedly recovered when police swooped in the house of Ybo Lastimosa on Monday afternoon.

Operatives of the Waterfront Police Station and the Investigation and Detective Management Branch arrested Lastimosa based on an arrest warrant issued by Regional Trial Court Judge Estela Singco.

The warrant stemmed from accusations that Lastimosa shot dead Ildefonso Vega Jr. last Nov. 17, 2012 in Talisay City.

Lastimosa was also implicated in the killing of Roy Bas last year in Talisay City and was also tagged in the shooting of Serafin Britania, a barangay tanod in San Roque.

Britania survived the attack which happened last year.

Lastimosa denied involvement in the killings of Vega and Bas. He, however, admitted shooting Britania.

Lastimosa also denied that guns were recovered in his house during his arrest. He said only the drug-sniffing paraphernalia were seized from his house.

Senior Supt. Noli Romana, chief of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said Lastimosa used to be the hit man of a drug personality.

Romana said further investigation will be made to find out if Lastimosa was involved in other crimes.

The firearms recovered from Lastimosa’s house will be subjected for cross-matching to determine if these were the same guns used in the killings.  /CORRESPONDENT CHITO O. ARAGON