Injured	Killed
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Date: 05 March 2010
Source: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=555168&publicationSubCategoryId=1071

Habal-habal driver killed
By Flor Z. Perolina (The Freeman) Updated March 05, 2010 12:00 AM

CEBU, Philippines – An unidentified man, collaborating with two accomplices, killed a driver of a “habal-habal,” the Cebuano slang for motorcycle taxi, and then took his vehicle with them yesterday noon.

PO2 Marino Lofranco of the Homicide Police of the Mandaue City Police Office identified the fatality as Liborio Vega, 33, single, and a resident of lower Cubacub, Mandaue City.

Lofranco said that during investigation, a 64-year-old witness said she saw Vega, who was traveling on his motorcycle with a passenger, pass by her and two men who were wearing short pants and t-shirts. She said she was on her way to sitio Riverside, the same place where a security guard was killed three days ago.

However, just meters away from where she was, she heard the passenger telling Vega to stop and then announcing a hold-up, pointing his gun at him. The man told Vega to get off the motorcycle.

She said she froze in her tracks for a while because she didn’t realize that the two men who were walking with her minutes ago were the armed man’s buddies.

She said the two men were the ones who grabbed the motorcycle from Vega while the armed man shot Vega once in the abdomen, killing him on the spot.

The three men fled on Vega’s motorcycle.

The witness said before the three men left, they threatened to harm her if she shouted for help.

A brother of the victim immediately went to the crime scene and told police that the motorcycle which was taken away was a black XRM-125 with no plate number as it was newly acquired through amortization and is up for registration yet.

Last Monday, a security guard who was detailed in a factory in sitio Riverside in barangay Canduman, Mandaue City was killed by a stay-in worker of the factory.

He died instantly after he was struck several times mostly on the head with a steel pipe.

With the suspect’s surrender to the police, the case is now closed.

Homicide chief P/Insp. Ramil Morpos said the police are watching out for a robbery group that is operating in the barangays. –  THE FREEMAN