A lawyer of slain former Lamitan City Mayor Rose Furigay has denied allegations by her client’s suspected killer that her family was involved in the illegal drug trade.
Meanwhile, Sen. Riza Hontiveros deplored the shooting incident at the Ateneo University where a lone gunman shot dead ex-Mayor Rose Furigay, along with her close-in bodyguard and a female security guard of the school.
“His story is untrue,” said lawyer Quirino Esguerra Jr. over Unang Balita report on Monday.
According to Esguerra, the gunman, Dr. Chao-Tiao Yumol, has a personal grudge against Furigay after the Lamitan City government ordered the closure of his infirmary clinic for supposedly operating without the necessary permit.
“He (Yumol) was even required to explain by the city council and by the city mayor, but what he did, he castigated them. He posted them on Facebook, malicious insinuation. So the mayor wouldn’t like to confront him about this, they filed cases. There are pending 60 cyberlibel cases,” Esguerra said.
The clinic, Esguerra said, was located just right across the street from the Lamitan City hall.
Yumul allegedly went into hiding since January 2021 over the cyber libel charges.
Esguerra said Yumul had jumped bail.
Upon arrest, Yumul, 38, a medical doctor, claimed Furigay and her husband, incumbent Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay, were drug lords in Basilan City.
He accused the Furigays of a plot to attack him thrice because of his expose about their involvement in the drug trade.
But Esguerra claimed otherwise, saying Yumul was just harboring an old grudge when the former mayor implemented a cease-and-desist order from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao against Yumul’s infirmary clinic across the Lamitan City hall for operating without a permit. “Those are pure lies,” he told a radio interview.
The suspect posted allegedly malicious insinuations on social media against Rose, then vice mayor Roderick Furigay, and city government workers, prompting Rose to file over 70 cyber libel cases against Yumul.
Last July 24, on board a transport network vehicle, Yumul entered the Ateneo de Manila University on Katipunan Road, Quezon City at 2:55 p.m. before the start of the commencement rites of the College of Law graduating students.
He joined the crowd of parents, faculty staff and graduates at the Arete building and waited for Rose to arrive.
Upon seeing his target, Yumul opened fire, killing the former mayor, her aide Victor George Capistrano, and campus lady security guard Jeneven Bandiala.
Hannah Rose Furigay, the 25-year-old daughter of Rose, was also injured during the shooting incident. She was taken to the Quirino Memorial Medical Center where she currently recuperates from gunshot wounds.
Yumul grabbed a tricycle, then took a bus ride to escape.
After a brief chase in Barangay Loyola Heights, with help from the citizens, police arrested Yumul.
Major Wennie Ann Cale, Quezon City Police District spokesperson, said Yumul will face three counts of murder, and charges of violation of Republic Act 10883 or the New Anti-Carnapping Law and RA 10591 or the Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunition, direct assault, malicious mischief and reckless imprudence resulting in damage to property.
Hontiveros said a school campus, which should be a zone of peace and a place of warmth, should never have to deal with these kinds of cruel attacks.
“Nothing less than justice should be served,” she said.
“This is for the sake of the bereaved, for our communities,” she added.
She noted that “there was no place for this shameless culture of impunity *that has been poisoning our country these past years.”
The opposition senator also aired her trust that the Ateneo will provide the needed psychosocial support for the well-being and mental health of anyone in need.
“I wish Hanna Furigay a speedy recovery from her injuries, and I condole with, thank, and ask the public to support the family of Jeneven Bandiala, the security guard who remained faithful to his duty until the end,” Hontiveros said.
Twenty-five-year-old Hannah Rose Marian Furigay, who sustained gunshot wounds in the head and the abdomen, was still in the hospital, but declared in stable condition.
“Nasa mabuting kalagayan na so far si Hannah Marian Furigay, in stable condition condition pero nasa ospital,” he said.
Hannah was supposed to graduate from the Ateneo De Manila University Sunday when the shooting incident occurred.
Meanwhile, incumbent Lamitan, Basilan Mayor Roderick Furigay has yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident.
“Hindi pa natin makausap si Mayor Roderick Furigay, siya ay malungkot na malungkot sa nangyari na ito,” Esguerra said.
PNP Director for Operations Maj. Gen. Valeriano de Leon said they don’t think the incident is related to the first State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
“This is an isolated case. We can say that this has nothing to with the State of the Nation Address,” Valeriano said.
Nonetheless, he advised cops to be more diligent in conducting inspections going forward so similar incidents can be avoided.
Meanwhile, Quezon City Police District chief Brig. Gen. Remus Medina disclosed some details about the suspect.
“According to him, he had got a, he rented an apartment, and then later on he transferred to hotel,” Medina noted.
“Based on our interrogation with him, he’d been here for a long time, do some casing and doing some surveillance on the family of Furigay. And then he was able to have the opportunity to sneak in inside Ateneo.”
The policeman also said that they confiscated two handguns from the suspect.
“When we accosted him in a public transport vehicle, we’re able to recover two firearms, so one 9mm Ruger and one 45 Llama, and [he] had with him several rounds.”
Medina said the Yumol had a license for the Ruger, but they are still looking for the Llama’s registration documents. He said the assailant had placed the guns in a bag which was not inspected, enabling him to pass through the university’s security checks.
The gunman also said he was able to enter Ateneo by using a transport network vehicle, according to the official.
“According to him he just hired a GrabTaxi and he was able to get inside the compound of the Ateneo.”