MEYCAUAYAN CITY, Bulacan – A police officer in uniform was found dead yesterday after midnight in Barangay Ubihan here. In a report to Senior Supt. Romeo Caramat Jr., acting Bulacan police director, Supt. Lailene Amparo identified the victim as PO3 Michael Lee Martin Manalad, a 34-year-old member of the Bulacan Police Provincial Office assigned in the Malolos City police station.
Manalad, a native of Isabela, Basilan, resided in Purok 4, Sta. Isabel, Malolos City. His body was found at 12:47 a.m. by barangay captain Niño Villadoz who called the police.
Villadoz told police that he heard two gunshots and when he checked where the noise came from, he stumbled upon the body.
Manalad was seated against a pole with visible strangulation mark around his neck. A nylon cord was wrapped around his mouth and a cardboard with a note, “PULIS NA PUSHER WAG TULARAN,” hung around his neck.
Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) of the Bulacan Crime Laboratory recovered a medium-size plastic sachet of suspected “shabu” wrapped with a packing tape from the left upper pocket of the victim’s police uniform.
The body was brought to Ever Funeral Homes in Iba for autopsy examination. (Freddie G. Velez)