BACOLOD City – “An act of treachery” was how Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran described the shooting of Councilor Ricardo “Cano” Tan and wife Anita in Purok Tagaytay, Barangay Alangilan last Friday.
Familiaran, presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panlungsod, and Councilor Claudio Puentevella urged the police to look into the matter thoroughly.
The Tans were ambushed while on their way home from the family-owned Campuestuhan Highland Resort in Barangay Cabatanga, Talisay City, Negros Occidental.
They were on board their Nissan Patrol sport utility vehicle – Tan was driving – when waylaid and peppered with bullets by three unidentified armed men aboard a small white wagon, said Chief Inspector Sherlock Gabana, spokesman of the Bacolod City Police Office.
Bullets missed Tan and his wife but the couple were wounded by the shards of their broken windshield, Gabana said.
The Tans were treated at the Riverside Medical Hospital after the shooting at around 5 p.m. on Dec. 14. Their vehicle was riddled with bullet holes – on the front, the door on the driver’s side and the rear – police said.
“We condemn the act of treachery that happened to Councilor Tan,” said Familiaran.
“We urge the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate the incident and apprehend the perpetrators immediately,” he said.
The vice mayor said he will propose to the city council to pass a resolution condemning the incident.
Already, Puentevella said, “We fully condemn the act done to our No. 1 councilor.”
Puentevella urged the police to work double-time to keep Bacolodnons safe.
“I don’t know what’s happening now. Who’s next? I pray that this administration will act on this,” he said.
Gabana said the BCPO was conducting a thorough investigation to identify the suspects and determine the motive.
Police were asking help from those who may have information that would lead to the capture of the shooters, he added./PN
