IMUS CITY, Cavite – A suspected motorcycle thief died pre-dawn Wednesday while his companion escaped in a shootout with a police team on Palanas Road in Barangay Buhay Na Tubig, this capital city.
The encounter reportedly happened after the suspects forcibly stole a motorcycle from a 27-year-old crew team leader of a popular fast food chain store on National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Road in Barangay Medicion II-F, also in the city.
The Imus police identified the fatality as Michael John Swing Padilla, 43, a resident of CitiHomes Subdivision in Barangay Molino IV, Bacoor City, Cavite.
His unidentified companion fled.
A police report said that Padilla suffered gunshot wounds and was declared dead on arrival at the Ospital ng Imus in Barangay Malagasang I-G.
Recovered from the scene were three shells for a 9mm pistol, one gray Honda motorcycle with no license plate that Padilla reportedly used, and the stolen blue Motorstar motorcycle (plate unknown) owned by the fast food crew team leader.
Also recovered from the suspect’s pocket were two small sachet containing suspected “shabu”.
In a report, Lieutenant Colonel Vicente Amante, Imus police chief; and Corporal Jessie Villanueva, case investigator, said the encounter transpired after one of the suspects fired a gun at the police checkpoint team led by Captain
Dexter M. Capua of the city police intelligence section and drug enforcement unit.
The shootout happened at about 12: 45 a.m. Wednesday. (Anthony Giron)
