Companion killed by riding in tandem.
Movie actor John Wayne Sace was wounded while his companion was killed when two motorcycle-riding armed men shot them at about 11:10 p.m. Monday in Pasig city.
Sace, 27, a former star magic talent of ABS-CBN, is under observation at Rizal Medical Center for a lone gunshot wound in the waist while his friend Erik Sabino, also known as ‘Erik Mata,’ was pronounced dead on arrival at the same hospital due to multiple gunshot wounds.
Police said Sace and Sabino, both residents of Barangay Sagad in Pasig City, were standing on Licsi Street in Barangay Caniogan when the suspects came and fired shots at them.
According to Police Senior Inspector Robert Garcia, chief of Pasig City Police investigation section, Sace and Sabino were allegedly waiting for “buyers” of illegal drugs at the place when the incident occurred.
“Ang sabi dun, naghihintay ng i-score (buyer). Kilala ‘yang tulak ng shabu,” Garcia said in an interview.
He added that Sace began as illegal drug user but later became a known illegal drug trader.
“Nuon yan, user lang. Alam mo ang mga user natin nagiging pusher… yung nai-score nila, binebenta nila,” Garcia added.
The police report said the victims were listed as drug user and pusher in the watchlist of Barangay Sagad.
Garcia also said the actor has allegedly been selling shabu in Barangays Caniogan and Maybunga.
In 2015, Sace admitted his battle against illegal drugs in separate interviews as he announced his return to showbusiness after a short hiatus.
He starred in the indie film “Pintakasi” in 2011 and “Matakot Ka Sa Karma” in 2007. He also appeared in several episodes of television series “Maalaala Mo Kaya.”
Sace was last seen as a dance competitor in TV5’s show “Move It” last year. He was also a member of dance group “AnimE.”
Authorities recovered five cartridge cases and one deformed bullet at the crime scene that were sent to the crime laboratory for investigation.
Police have requested a copy of the CCTV footage in Barangay Caniogan to determine the motive behind the incident.
(JENNY F. MANONGDO)