In another handiwork of riding in tandem, a former trusted aide of a slain alleged gun-for-hire was shot to death in broad daylight in Getafe.
The murder came barely a week after another trusted aide of a slain druglord in Getafe died in a shootout with authorities in Talibon.
At around 10:45 a.m. on August 10, the Getafe Police Station received a report about a shooting incident in Poblacion area of the town.
The responding police team later identified the victim as one Abundio Valendez- -a 24-year-old jobless resident of sitio Mahayahay in Poblacion, Getafe- -one of those who earlier yielded to authorities through Oplan Tokhang and once ranked 5th in the watchlist of drug personalities in the town.
Based on initial report, the victim was with his cousin, Victor Valendez Jr., travelling onboard on a motorcycle that morning and upon reaching near the corner of Fuentes St. in Poblacion area, they disembarked and transferred to another motorcycle.
Before they could move, a riding in tandem suddenly arrived and without a word, shot Abundio several times.
Abundio was brought to Garcia Memorial Provincial Hospital, he was declared dead on arrival, while his cousin survived from the gunshot wound on his left leg.
Scene of the Crime Operatives recovered a caliber .45 empty shell.
On background check, it shows that Abundio used to be the right hand of Elly Job Cabahug, also known as “Tatayâ€, a suspected gun-for-hire that the Provincial Public Safety Company (PPSC) had killed in a shootout on January 16 this year in Barangay Jagoliao, Getafe.
Then police provincial director, PSSupt. Dennis Agustin, had confirmed that Cabahug led a band of contract killers operating in Bohol and nearby provinces.
Three teams of the PPSC/SWAT, led by PSupt. Nicomedes Olaivar, conducted a seaborne patrol at around 6 a.m. on January 16 at a beach house along sitio Teroy in Barangay Jagoliao, Getafe in response to a report from a confidential informant about an armed person indiscriminately firing his gun while riding a jetski.
The PPSC team ordered Cabahug (then riding his jetski) to surrender, but the latter, instead, opened fire at the police team using a cal. 45 KG-9 sub-machine gun while holding a hand grenade.
The PPSC team was forced to fire back, resulting to Cabahug’s death.
The SOCO recovered a cal. 45 pistol loaded with magazine, live ammos of cal. 45, and fired cartridge cases; two KG9 submachine guns; a cal. 22 rifle; a k-9 caliber 9mm loaded with ammunitions, cal. 45 fired ammos; an apple-type fragmentation hand grenade; a bullet-proof vest; bank deposit slips; and eight big sachets of shabu discovered in two jetskis of Cabahug.
Cabahug, a resident of Barangay Asinan in Buenavista, had been tagged in the killing of Engr. Landy Torregosa, and another victim identified as Marlon Manatad.
He was also allegedly involved in the killing of husband and wife, Jonel and Sayong Torregosa at sitio Hulganan in Barangay Overland; and another victim, Gerson Toradio.
Cabahug was also allegedly involved in the murder of a barangay captain of Soong in Lapu-lapu, Cebu while in Clarin, Bohol.
He was also tagged in the murders Niño Melancolico, a habal-habal driver and Junior Melancolico, another habal-habal driver in Barangay Hunan, Buenavista; Jeffrey Gakasan, an ex-army in Poblacion, Buenavista; a “masyadur†in cockfight derby in Nahawan, Clarin; another one in Barangay Nasingin, Getafe; a certain Ruz Buenavista in Jagoliao island; Ronie Apa-ap, a farmer leader in the line up of then Landy Torregosa from Cawag, Buenavista; Paul Apa-ap, Ronie’s brother of Cawag, Buenavista; Ariel Zafra, a handler in Batasan Island, Tubigon; Tony Sanchez of Nueva Granda, Buenavista; Cyril Degamo, a pusher in Barangay Rufo Hill, Buenavista; and Michael Melancolico, another pusher in Rufo Hill, Buenavista,
Cabahug was also known to Getafe residents as a drug dealer, and “constantly harassed tourists and local residentsâ€.
Agustin also said that Cabahug is a caretaker of a beach house in Jagoliao island, and engaged in the trade of illegal drugs and guns from Cebu to Getafe and nearby towns.
Just last week, Troy Dela Torre- -a former trusted aide of Owen Rosales, who was tagged as mastermind in the brutal ambush of then Ubay chief of police, chief inspector George Caña, in June 2014- -was killed in a shootout with the police.
Dela Torre, who was allegedly heavily armed, resisted arrest during the buy-bust operation on August 5 in Talibon.
After firing his gun at a police officer, the buy-bust back-up team neutralized Dela Torre.
In another operation on August 10 in Buenavista, another drug personality got killed in a buy-bust operation that turned into a shootout.
The buy-bust subject, Donald Torregosa, a 38-year-old resident of barangay Hunan, pulled his firearm tucked in his waist when the cops positioned to arrest him after he handed a sachet of shabu to the poseur-buyer.
He then pointed it to the poseur-buyer, but the back-up team shot him before he could pull the trigger.
The Scene of the Crime Operatives recovered the Armscor 202 cal. 38 with serial no. 1029492 that Torregosa used with five live ammunitions in its cylinder, two medium-size sachets of shabu placed in a small cap that was the subject of the sale, and the 500-peso bill used marked money from his possession.
The police team rushed Torregosa to Dagohoy Hospital in Inabanga, but the attending physician pronounced him dead on arrival.
Police Inspector Benicer Tamboboy said Torregosa ranked 4th in their watch list of drug personalities.