• RICHARD T. CABALLERO JR.
A 45-year-old laborer was gunned down by three unidentified armed men on Friday evening in a mountainous area of Sitio Lumbia, Barangay Camansi, Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental.
The victim was identified as Danny Francisco, married, and a resident of the area.
According to the investigation of the Kabankalan Component City Police Station, the testimony of the victim’s brother said two explosions were heard near the area prior to the discovery of the incident.
The witness thought that it was just a firecracker. However, upon approaching their family house, he heard Francisco shouting for help, shouting his name.
The witness ran towards a nearby sugarcane field out of fear, and then heard another gunshot.
The witness did not think that the gunshot was delivered to end his brother’s life, as their neighbor informed him that his brother had been shot by three unidentified suspects, resulting in his immediate death at the crime scene.
The victim’s body was immediately brought to Lorenzo D. Zayco District Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending physician and was brought to Sola Gracia Funeral Homes for post-mortem examination.
After the incident, the Armando Sumayang Jr-New People’s Army (ASJC-NPA) released a statement claiming responsibility for the death of Francisco.
ASJC-NPA claimed that they ordered the killing of the latter due to their accusations that Francisco was an intelligence asset of the 15th Infantry Battalion.
The rebels also pointed out that the victim was accountable for the death of 15 members and leaders of the NPA who were slain by the authorities due to the information given to the authorities from 2022 up to the present.*
