SAN JOSE, Antique – The No. 1 most wanted person in Antique has been arrested in Bacoor, Cavite.
The 41-year-old Niel “Toto” Paller of Barangay Iguirindon, San Remigio town was one of the three suspects in a shooting and stabbing incident in Barangay Iguirindon, San Remigio on Jan. 29, 1999.
Working as a security guard in Cavite, Paller was caught at the house he was renting in Bacoor at around 3 p.m. on March 18.
He was served with an arrest warrant for murder (Criminal Case No. 99-4-6083) issued on Feb. 22, 2000 yet by Judge Nery Durendes of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 10 (San Jose, Antique).
Joint elements of the San Remigio police station and Antique Provincial Tracker Team served the arrest warrant in coordination with the Cavite Police Provincial Office.
The police’s informant in this successful arrest was a resident of San Remigio working in Cavite.
Paller was placed under three months of surveillance before he was arrested.
He said he went into hiding for almost 22 years because he was scared to surrender. The siblings of the victim in his murder case were police officers, he pointed out.
The Jan. 29, 1999 shooting and stabbing may have stemmed from old grudges. That day, the suspect and victim had an argument at a drinking binge.
The two other suspects in this case had been convicted long ago and were meted prison sentences.
The court recommended no bail for Paller’s temporary liberty. He would be remitted to RTC Branch 10./PN
