KAWIT, Cavite, Philippines—The number of persons killed in Friday’s deadly shooting rampage, including the amok himself, rose to eight, while five others are “still struggling for their lives in the hospital,” according to the governor of Cavite.
Among those killed was the four-year-old godchild of gunman Ronald Bae.
Cavite Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla condemned the carnage which “could have been prevented if only the police listened to the complaints from the community” against Bae.
Bae, on Friday morning, stepped out of his home in Barangay Tabon I and opened fire at his neighbors, among them children.
Senior Superintednent Alexander Rafael, Cavite police director, said Bae started shooting his neighbors with a .45 semi-automatic pistol at around 9:30 a.m. for no apparent reason.
Bae, a middle-aged man had once contested and lost an election for the post of local village chief.
Investigating Officer Arnulfo Lopez said no motive for the killings had yet been determined but residents told Agence France-Presse Bae had been drinking heavily on Thursday night.
They said the rampage began near Bae’s home in a rundown part of Kawit town and nearby neighbors were among those killed.
Another neighbor, 56-year-old Alberto Fernandez, was also shot as he stood on his porch, according to the victim’s brother-in-law, Lito Ronquillo.
Bae then walked towards a nearby market, shooting more people before returning home where police demanded he surrender, according to Lopez.
“He opened fire on the police. So a gunbattle ensued which resulted in the death of the suspect,” Lopez said.
The shooting only stopped when police shot Bae, who resisted arrest. Bae died in the hospital.
Remulla, meanwhile said a person identified only as John Paul helped Bae reload the .45 cal. gun used in the shooting.
“This John Paul was Bae’s caretaker of his house here,” he said. John Paul, however, had escaped.
Bae was originally from Imus City, before he moved to his home here. “This man was notorious for using drugs (shabu),” Remulla said.
He left Cavite for a year and had just returned to celebrate the New Year here.
“The neighbors said he indiscriminately fired his gun on New Year’s Eve and again on January 2,” Remulla said.
The Cavite provincial government will shoulder all funeral expenses of the victims, he said.
He also offered a P100,000 reward to whoever can provide information on John Paul’s whereabouts.
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