ILOILO City – Were the men who shot to death a call center agent in Barangay Cuartero, Jaro district a little past noon on Jan. 19 the same persons who killed a young businessman in Barangay Nabitasan, La Paz district just minutes after?
Ballistics examination on the slugs recovered from the two crime scenes showed that the same pistols – .9mm and .45 – were used on call center agent and drug suspect Alain Muller and businessman Delfin Britanico.
Muller was killed at 12:03 p.m. and less than 30 minutes after, Britanico was gunned down.
Witnesses told the police Muller’s attackers were two men who got down from a silver-painted car while those of Britanico were on a black van.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Joem Malong, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6), proffered a theory – the black van may be a backup vehicle of Muller’s hurrying gunmen and they may have transferred to it, then they figured in a traffic altercation with the motorcycle-driving Britanico.
Another possible scenario, according to Malong, would be Mullers’ gunmen giving Britanico a chase because the businessman happened to witness their crime in Barangay Cuartero, Jaro.
But the investigation is ongoing and no conclusions have been made yet.
There are two parallel probes – that of the Iloilo City Police Office and that of the National Bureau of Investigation requested by Britanico’s father, former assemblyman Salvador “Buddy” Britanico.
“Every information coming in is being analyzed,” said Malong.
Yesterday, the Britanico family issued an official statement. Here it is in full:
“We, the members of the Britanico and Lao families, condemn the broad daylight shooting and murder of our dearest husband, father, son, brother, and family members of Delfin Celestial Britanico in Barangay Nabitasan, La Paz on Jan. 19.
“Del was killed at the young age of 36 years old. The families trust the law enforcement agencies supported by the local and national government will catch those responsible for this gruesome act of killing.
“We are appealing to those who have knowledge or information that may lead to the arrest of the perpetrators to share these with law enforcement agencies and to mobile number 09369181307.”
Britanico was running a trucking business and a chain of laundry shops./PN
