BY JEN BAYLON
ILOILO – The Lambunao municipal police are narrowing down their focus on two persons of interest in the shooting death of Antonio Artiaga, whose body was discovered in Barangay Tranghawan on Nov. 9.
Major Jogen Suegay, Lambunao police chief, said Artiaga had been suspected of pickpocketing at a local market on Nov. 8.
Records from the Philippine National Police show that the victim had previous criminal charges in different localities. In February 2020, there was a theft charge against a person with the name Antonio Murcilla Artiaga in Digos City. Subsequently, he was released from prison. Additionally, in September 2010, a person with the same name faced a theft charge in Cabuyao, Laguna.
Furthermore, another individual by the name of Antonio Artiaga has a robbery charge in Butuan City and is currently at large.
Colonel Ronaldo Palomo, director of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office, previously confirmed that Artiaga had a criminal record in Maasin, Iloilo, and was linked to the use of counterfeit currency.
Presently, the police are awaiting the arrival of the victim’s family to claim the body for a proper burial.
The 75-year-old cockfighting enthusiast was found in a ravine with multiple gunshot wounds. He was last seen alive at a cockpit arena the night before the discovery and was purportedly involved in an altercation.
Artiaga’s senior citizen ID and laboratory request indicated an address in Barangay Aplaya, Digos City, in Davao del Sur province. He had been temporarily residing in Barangay Tipolo, Mina, Iloilo./PN
