By: Freddie Velez and Franco Regala
CAMP GENERAL ALEJO SANTOS, Malolos City, Bulacan – Police arrested on Wednesday a suspect in the massacre of a family of five in San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan Tuesday.
Senior Supt. Romeo M. Caramat Jr., acting Bulacan police director, identified the suspect as Carmelino Navarro Ibañez, 26, single, a construction worker from Negros Occidental.
Caramat said the suspect was arrested in San Jose del Monte City a few hours after a special investigation task group was created and after a witness positively identified Ibañez as the man he saw coming out of the victims’ house at dawn last Tuesday.
Police investigators said that the suspect and his two companions were high on drugs and under the influence of liquor when they committed the crime.
In a press conference in Camp Olivas, San Fernando City, Pampanga yesterday, Chief Supt. Aaron N. Aquino, Central Luzon police director, said that the suspect confessed to the crime in front of his mother.
“As our protocol, extrajudicial confession will be taken with the aid of his legal counsel,’’ said Aquino, who noted that the suspect was arrested 33 hours after the incident.
The suspect told police that he and an alias “Tony” and alias “Inggo” were on their way home when they heard a voice coming from nowhere telling them to enter the house of security guard Dexter Carlos Sr. at North Ridge Royal Subdivision. Ibañez said Inggo is a repairman and Tony is a financier.
Once inside, they stabbed to death Dexter’s blind mother-in-law Auring, 58; wife Estrella, 35, and children Donnie, 11; Ella, 7, and Dexter Jr., 1. Ibañez said they also raped Auring and Estrella.
The suspect said the crime was not planned and they raped Auring and Estrella at a “spur of the moment.”
Ibañez said they had no intentions of killing the children. “Wala na kasi ako maalala maliban sa napatay namin ’yung mga babae bago ’yung mga bata.’’
Dexter Sr. discovered the crime after he arrived from work Tuesday morning.
Aquino has ordered a manhunt operation against the other suspects. Bulacan Gov. Wilhelmino M. Sy-Alvarado and San Jose del Monte City Mayor Arthur Robes had offered a cash reward of P100,000 each for the arrest of the suspects.
Aquino appealed to the public to support and help the police in its fight against lawlessness, especially its all out war against illegal drugs by promptly reporting suspicious individuals or activities.
