Police have arrested the third suspect in the killing of a forest ranger last week in a follow-up operation in El Nido, Palawan.
Police Brig. Gen. Tomas Apolinario, director of the Police Regional Office 4-B (Mindoro Occidental and Oriental, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan), identified the suspect as Ruel Fulgencio.
Fulgencio, Apolinario said, was wounded in a shootout with the police.
The suspect was tagged as among the six illegal loggers who hacked to death forest ranger Bienvenido “Toto” Veguilla who caught them cutting trees inside a protected forest in El Nido.
The first suspect to fall was Felmar Flores who was caught when police responded during the hacking of Veguilla. The second was Ricardo Fulgencio who was arrested in a raid in his house in Barangay Pasadena, El Nido.
As soon as police were tipped of the location of 29-year old Ruel, a police team was immediately deployed to Barangay Corong-Corong, El Nido.
“But while police personnel are approaching the area, he shot one of our policemen. But he missed,” said Apolinario.
Police returned fire and wounded Ruel. He was shot in the foot and was taken to the nearby hospital. (Aaron Recuenco)
