CEBU CITY – A father and his two sons, allegedly members of the New People’s Army (NPA), were arrested in connection with the brutal killings of four policemen in July last year in Ayungon town, Negros Oriental.
Belly Ebedo, his sons Jelly and Geli were nabbed one after another.
“These are members of the NPA but they work as construction workers,” Police Brig. Gen. Albert Ignatius Ferro, chief of the Police Regional Office-Central Visayas (PRO 7), said yesterday.
Government forces arrested the suspects on the strength of an arrest warrant issued by Regional Trial Court Judge Rosario Carriaga of Branch 75 in Bais, Negros, Oriental.
The Ebedos are facing murder charges for the killing of Cpl. Relebert Beronio, Pat. Raffy Callao, Pat. Roel Cabellon, and Pat. Marquino de Leon on July 18, 2019 in Sitio Yamut, Barangay Mabato, Ayungon.
“Based on the autopsy, they were killed brutally. They were abducted, tortured and executed in public. It was a barbaric, a transgression of the basic rights of any individual,” said Ferro.
With the arrest of the father and sons, at least seven suspects are now in the custody of the police.
There were at least 30 persons involved in the crime.
President Duterte had offered a P7-million bounty for the arrest of the perpetrators.
Jelly was arrested last February 18 in Murcia town, Negros Occidental, while Gelie was nabbed last February 22 in Barangay Singcang, Bacolod City. Belly was apprehended last February 23.
“We were able to arrest these suspects with the help of a credible witness. The community also assisted us because they no longer want the NPA to continue with their unfounded ideology,” said Ferro.
The witness, who was brought to the PRO 7 yesterday, said he was able to identify the suspects since they were neighbors in Ayungon.
The witness said that he was about 30 meters away when the suspects executed the victims by shooting them in the back of their heads. (Calvin Cordova)