By Jovy S. Taghoy Sun.Star Staff Reporter With Jujemay G. Awi
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ceb/2006/09/08/news/ex.governor.shot.to.death.html
The former governor of Biliran Province was shot in Cebu City as he was about to leave a commercial vessel early yesterday morning, casting doubts on port security as Cebu gets ready for an international summit just three months away.
Former Biliran governor Danilo Parilla died of a single gunshot in the head. He was rushed to the emergency room of the Chong Hua Hospital but died at 7:23 a.m. The lawyer was 52.
Alleged triggerman Eugenio N. Corpin, 56, of Barangay San Isidro, Naval, Biliran, was arrested by a team from the Mobile Patrol Group (MPG) minutes after the attack occurred past 5 a.m. inside the MV Cagayan Princess.
The vessel arrived at Pier 4 in Cebu City from Naval, Biliran with Parilla, his wife Susan and Corpin aboard.
Police confirmed that Corpin used to work for the family of Naval Mayor Gerardo Espina Sr., who defeated Parilla for the mayor’s office. But police have found no reason, so far, to suspect politics was behind the attack.
At City Hall, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmena called on the authorities to tighten port security, which he found too lax.
“Dili man sila istrikto sa mga barko. Labi na og daghan kaayo tawo. (They’re not strict enough aboard ships, especially when there are plenty of passengers.) They really should tighten security there, especially now,” he said.
PRECAUTION
Ship captain Gregorio Mabitad Sr. said they did conduct an inspection. In an ABS-CBN interview, Mabitad said he is also willing to have his crew investigated to determine who committed any security lapses.
He added that had they known of the threat to Parilla’s life, they would have kept him in a safe place and asked for police assistance before he was allowed to disembark from the ship.
Corpin, in an interview, denied killing Parilla. His face was badly bruised and one eye was bloodshot.
He said “a sympathetic friend” whom he identified as Norberto “Norbing” Napules was responsible for the killing. Parilla’s family could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Several witnesses, including a 28-year-old female passenger, pointed to Corpin as the one who killed Parilla.
WITNESSES
The witness, in her affidavit, claimed she was only about one meter away from where Parilla was killed. Corpin even pushed her aside because she was blocking his way.
Another female witness said she heard Parilla’s wife Susan asking Corpin, “Gene, nganong gipusil man nimo akong bana? (Gene, why have you shot my husband?)”
A Mobile Patrol team—composed of PO3 Jaime Aparre, PO1s Rommel Mediodia, Junicar Esteneso and Sir Abatayo— arrested Corpin. They also found a .45 pistol loaded with eight bullets kept inside his backpack.
A spare magazine filled with eight more bullets was also found inside the bag.
Initial information gathered by the Homicide Section of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) indicated that the killing may have been triggered by Corpin’s grudge against Parilla.
CCPO Director Melvin Gayotin, however, ordered investigators to look deeper into the other possible motives.
GRUDGE
While he admitted harboring a grudge against Parilla, Corpin told Sun.Star Cebu it has never occurred to him to kill the former governor. He said he did not even know Parilla was in the same ship.
It was only when he and Napules were about to disembark from the vessel when the latter allegedly told him about the former governor’s presence. Napules allegedly told Corpin that he would kill Parilla.
After shooting Parilla, Corpin said, Napules passed the handgun to him, which he stashed inside his backpack.
“Kon gusto nako siyang patyon, didto na lang sa Naval, dili na nako paabton dinhi sa Cebu (Had I wanted to kill him, I could have done so in Naval. Why would I wait till we arrived in Cebu?),” Corpin said.
Robert Juve Yao Ang, the agency manager of MV Cagayan Princess, disputed the suspect’s claim he had no idea the former governor was in the same trip. Ang knew both the victim and suspect.
CALL FOR HELP
Ang, in his affidavit, said that at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, he saw Corpin board the vessel.
Corpin allegedly advised the ticket collector to wait until he confirmed if his companion was already on board. After meeting his male companion, Corpin bought a ticket.
Knowing that Corpin and Parilla earlier fought in Naval, Ang said he advised the suspect not to initiate “any unlawful acts against Parilla and even advised him to settle their differences.”
After talking to Corpin, Ang said he also informed Parilla about the other man’s presence and advised the former governor to transfer to a cabin, for his safety. The next thing Ang knew, Parilla had already been shot.
At 5 a.m. yesterday, the Mobile Patrol in Cebu City received a call for protection at the Pier 4 area, as former governor Parilla’s life was at risk.
SUSPECT
PO3 Aparre and PO1s Mediodia, Esteneso and Abatayo arrived at the port area minutes before the vessel docked. Just as some passengers started to disembark, a single gunshot rang out, prompting the police to rush inside.
Aparre said that when they were approaching the gangplank, he came across Corpin, who even told him, “Naay gipusil didto (Someone’s been shot).” Aparre, however, got suspicious, and stopped Corpin in his tracks. At that point, a witness identified Corpin as the one who shot Parilla.
While Aparre accosted and handcuffed Corpin, the other policemen went inside the vessel and found Parilla slumped on the floor, right in front of the door leading to the gangplank. CCPO Director Gayotin and Vice Control Section Chief George Ylanan, who was the staff duty officer when the attack occurred, said they will also determine why the shipping company failed to detect the firearm Corpin carried.
LAWYERS
Gayotin agreed with Mayor Osmena’s statement to enforce stricter security in the port area, particularly in inspecting passengers’ luggage.
Corpin, for his part, accused the police of beating him black and blue when he was arrested. Corpin said he could identify the policemen who mauled him if given the chance to see them again.
However, when Corpin met with the four responding policemen, he said he could not remember their faces.
News of the former governor’s death saddened his Cebu-based compañeros at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP).
IBP Cebu City Chapter president Alex Tolentino said they will try to finish today the organization’s resolution on the killing. Tolentino remembered Parilla as “an active, jolly fellow who was nice to talk to and had firm decision-making capabilities.”
Parilla was a member of the Young Lawyers Association of Cebu in the early 1990s, before becoming vice governor of Biliran. He was an associate of lawyer Adelino Sitoy.
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