A Bacolod hardware store owner was killed by a gun-for-hire with a pending warrant of arrest, a police official said on Wednesday, Sept. 10.
Romie Yu Li, 52, owner of Republic Hardware, was killed with a single bullet that hit the back of his head Tuesday morning, Col. Joeresty P. Coronica, Bacolod police director, said at a press conference.
Li was about to open his store at the Bacolod Central Market area when the gunman, whom witnesses had seen waiting in the area, shot him from behind.
The victim was hit with a special hollow-point bullet that expands when it hits its target, Coronica said.
“They have witnesses who saw the suspect eye to eye prior to the shooting, and they already have his picture,” Coronica said, adding that he had been arrested before.
The suspect was described as walking with a limp, he said.
The suspect has a standing warrant of arrest for attempted homicide and had been charged with violating Republic Act 10591, or the comprehensive law on firearms and ammunition, Coronica said.
Witnesses said the killer escaped in an old model Montero sport utility vehicle, Coronica said.
The police are conducting a manhunt for the suspect and hope to extract information on who was the mastermind behind the killing, Coronica said.
Coronica said the police have yet to establish the motive for the killing and are scheduling a meeting with Li’s family to determine if he had any known enemies or had received threats.
They also want to determine what other businesses he was engaged in aside from the hardware store, he said.
A meeting between Bacolod Mayor Greg Gasataya, the Filipino-Chinese community, and the police is set for Thursday, Coronica said.
They have yet to determine if a reward will be put up for the arrest of the suspect, he said.
Coronica said they have gathered CCTV footage from the area to back their investigation.
However, he said not all business establishments have CCTV cameras as required by an existing city ordinance.
He said they will request the Bacolod Permits and Licensing Division to require business establishments to have CCTVs prior to the issuance of their permits.
CHURCH DRIVER’S CASE
Coronica said the incident was the second recent broad daylight killing in Bacolod City.
Efren Banaglorioso, 59, a driver for the Bacolod Cosmopolitan Christian Church, was shot to death outside the church on Sunday, August 24.
“They have identified the gunman and are working on a case buildup with city prosecutors,” he said.
They are gathering more evidence to ensure that it meets the requirements for a reasonable certainty of conviction, Coronica said.
“They have not established the motive for the killing of Banaglorioso, as he had no record of illegal activities,” he said.
It has not been determined yet if the killing was a case of mistaken identity.
PICE STATEMENT
The Philippine Institute of Civil Engineers (PICE) – Negros Occidental Chapter, in a statement, said they deeply mourn the passing of Li, a PICE-NOC past president and a civil engineering graduate of De La Salle University, Manila.
“We strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and call for justice to be served, that the perpetrators may be swiftly apprehended and made accountable,” it said.
“Engr. Romie was a true pillar of PICE-NOC—always supportive, hardworking, and generous with his time and resources,” PICE-NOC added.
“His dedication, humility, and kindness touched the lives of countless colleagues and friends in the profession… His passing is a great loss to our Chapter and to the civil engineering profession as a whole,” it added.*