BY RUBY SILUBRICO and GLENDA TAYONA
ILOILO City – Drug trafficking had something to do with the death of Barangay Captain Remia Prevendido Gregori of Bakhaw, Mandurriao district, the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) said.
But the IPPO investigators have yet to determine what exactly led to the fatal shooting of Gregori at her beach resort in Barangay Igcadlum, San Joaquin town on Sunday.
Seven armed men killed Gregori and house help Analee Antipatia (not Antipatria as earlier reported), IPPO director Senior Superintendent Marlon Tayaba told a news conference at the Police Regional Office 6 on Monday.
Gregori is the sister of slain drug lord Richard “Buang” Prevendido.
When Prevendido was shot and killed in a police antidrug operation on Sept. 1 last year in Barangay Balabago, Jaro district, Gregori took over their drug business and Antipatia served as her courier, Tayaba said, citing intelligence information.
“Illegal drug business or drug syndicate rivalry had something to do with their deaths,” said Tayaba. “Siguro may naiwan na utang sa drugs si Richard (Prevendido) at may mga atraso sa ibang drug personalities or business rivalry kaya siya (Gregori) ay pinatay.”
Meanwhile human rights group Karapatan – Panay strongly condemned the killing of Gregori and her house help.
Clearly the perpetrators wanted the barangay captain dead – taking her out while unarmed and in no capacity to fight back, said the group’s secretary-general Reyland Hervias.
Gregori died of multiple gunshot wounds at the San Joaquin Mother and Child Hospital. Her husband Bonifacio Sr. survived the attack but sustained a gunshot wound on a leg.
The bonnet-wearing armed men hurriedly left the Crystal Beach Resort after the shooting at around 4:20 p.m., investigation showed.
IPPO investigators were still trying to identify the suspects as of this writing.
While they have “facial identity” of some of the suspects, they were still gathering more information and statements from witnesses, Tayaba said.
From what the IPPO has gathered so far, it appeared that the shooting was planned and Gregori was placed under surveillance, he said.
On Sept. 18 last year Gregori voluntarily appeared at the Mandurriao police station for police profiling although she insisted that she was not involved in illegal drugs.
Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency tagged Gregori as “high-value target (HVT) level 3” while Prevendido was “HVT level 4.”
According to Vergara, the killers could be either police officers gone rogue or armed groups on a killing spree.
The human rights group leader blamed the police for failing to spot the perpetrators.
“Wala kita sang iban nga dapat sukton kundi mismo ang PNP (Philippine National Police) kag ang ila nga intel network kon ngaa wala nila namutikan ang ato nga grupo,” said Vergara.
He noted that the killings happened just days after President Rodrigo Duterte visited Iloilo province.
The Gregoris were shot inside a room, police said. Responding officers recovered spent bullet shells for M16.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Region 6 described Gregori’s Barangay Bakhaw as the go-to place of drug pushers and users but the village chief had shrugged off the tag./PN
