Politician implicated in killing of mayor in Cagayan

TUGUEGARAO, Philippines – A politician and two others have been fingered by witnesses as the suspects in an ambush that killed a mayor in the northern province of Cagayan last year, police said. SPO1 Ferdinand Simangan of the provincial police force said the survivors of the attack pointed to former Rizal town councilor Alfedo Alvarez and his two companions identified as Christopher Carian and Cecelio Palattao as the perpetrators of the crime. Killed in the attack were Rizal mayor Raul dela Cruz and three of his aides. De la Cruz was in a van with seven others on their way to Manila when they were attacked with automatic rifle fire in a remote village in Solana town on the night of December 3. Three other companions of the mayor survived the attack and gave their testimonies to police investigators. Simangan withheld the names of the witnesses for their protection. He said the survivors have recounted that they were positive the voices they heard coming from where the gunmen were seen during the ambush belong to the suspects. Earlier, Senior Supt. Moro Virgilio Lazo, Cagayan police provincial director, disclosed that there was enough information which could lead to the resolution of the case. The information was kept under wraps pending the witnesses' positive identification of the suspects. Alvarez denied the accusations against him. He said there’s no truth to the witnesses’ testimonies and that his conscience is clear. - GMANews.TV