ANGELES CITY – The killing of a former American cop James Basham here last Sept.19 seemed to have arisen from a lovers’ quarrel, while there is a growing suspicion that the murder of Briton Bruce Anthony Jones two days later could indeed be linked to his being the captain of a ship found with heavy arms in Bataan last year.
This, even as Chief Inspector Danilo Mendoza, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Pampanga, also told Punto that probers have already identified the gunman in the killing of Rene Tetangco, brother of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas governor Amando Tetangco, his friend Florencio Yap and Yap’s aide Dennis Guinto in this city last June 2.
Mendoza said that probers have also already identified the mastermind in the Tetangco murders, but witnesses who helped probers have yet to be convinced to give official testimonies.
“We are confident of solving the Basham case, but the Jones case seems to be deep,” said Mendoza whose office is a member of separate task forces created by high police authorities to solve the three crimes in this city.
Mendoza said that apart from identifying the gunman in the Tetangco case, probers now have a suspect in the killing of the three victims whose bodies were found in Yap’s sports utility van on a vacant lot in Barangay Pampang on June 3. This, after they were murdered elsewhere the previous night on their way to play poker at the King’s Poker and Sports Club here.
Mendoza declined to give names so as not to derail efforts of the police to convince fearful witnesses to give official testimonies.
“We have witnesses but they are all afraid,” he said amid reports that the suspect could be “powerful”.
Suspects in the case of Basham were not professionals, as indicated by the improvised short firearm with armalite bullet that they used, Mendoza said. A witness even described the face of the gunman who had removed his full motorcycle helmet while waiting for Basham. As in the case of Jones, the suspects also used a motorcycle to flee.
“It would seem that the crime had something to do with a lovers’ quarrel. Basham had another girlfriend and had quarreled with his wife whom he wanted to leave,” Mendoza said.
Mendoza expressed confidence that police would be able to solve the Basham case soon, despite their inability to now locate the witness who saw the gunman’s face.
Meanwhile, arms smuggling seems to be gaining grounds as motive in the killing of Jones, as Mendoza confirmed that the Briton was a state witness in the case of the Panama-registered ship which was found with 54 Indonesian Galil rifles worth P25 million off the coast of Mariveles, Bataan in July last year. Fifteen already empty crates were also found on the ship.
“It would seem that a gun-for-hire group was hired to kill Jones and the gunman and his accomplices had trailed him from his residence in Olongapo to Angeles. They were already there when he picked up his wife from Robinson’s in San Fernando (Pampanga) and when the Jones couple proceeded to Marquee mall in Angeles,” he noted.
Mendoza noted that “the manner of execution of the crime hinted professionals” in the Jones case. Jones sustained four bullet wounds from a .45 calibre pistol and that a wound in his right hand indicated he had attempted to shield his wife in their car. The wife survived, but also sustained a bullet wound.
A pending criminal case on the arms smuggling incident in Bataan is now pending before a Quezon City court, with names that sound either foreign or Filipino as respondents.
This, even as Chief Inspector Danilo Mendoza, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Pampanga, also told Punto that probers have already identified the gunman in the killing of Rene Tetangco, brother of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas governor Amando Tetangco, his friend Florencio Yap and Yap’s aide Dennis Guinto in this city last June 2.
Mendoza said that probers have also already identified the mastermind in the Tetangco murders, but witnesses who helped probers have yet to be convinced to give official testimonies.
“We are confident of solving the Basham case, but the Jones case seems to be deep,” said Mendoza whose office is a member of separate task forces created by high police authorities to solve the three crimes in this city.
Mendoza said that apart from identifying the gunman in the Tetangco case, probers now have a suspect in the killing of the three victims whose bodies were found in Yap’s sports utility van on a vacant lot in Barangay Pampang on June 3. This, after they were murdered elsewhere the previous night on their way to play poker at the King’s Poker and Sports Club here.
Mendoza declined to give names so as not to derail efforts of the police to convince fearful witnesses to give official testimonies.
“We have witnesses but they are all afraid,” he said amid reports that the suspect could be “powerful”.
Suspects in the case of Basham were not professionals, as indicated by the improvised short firearm with armalite bullet that they used, Mendoza said. A witness even described the face of the gunman who had removed his full motorcycle helmet while waiting for Basham. As in the case of Jones, the suspects also used a motorcycle to flee.
“It would seem that the crime had something to do with a lovers’ quarrel. Basham had another girlfriend and had quarreled with his wife whom he wanted to leave,” Mendoza said.
Mendoza expressed confidence that police would be able to solve the Basham case soon, despite their inability to now locate the witness who saw the gunman’s face.
Meanwhile, arms smuggling seems to be gaining grounds as motive in the killing of Jones, as Mendoza confirmed that the Briton was a state witness in the case of the Panama-registered ship which was found with 54 Indonesian Galil rifles worth P25 million off the coast of Mariveles, Bataan in July last year. Fifteen already empty crates were also found on the ship.
“It would seem that a gun-for-hire group was hired to kill Jones and the gunman and his accomplices had trailed him from his residence in Olongapo to Angeles. They were already there when he picked up his wife from Robinson’s in San Fernando (Pampanga) and when the Jones couple proceeded to Marquee mall in Angeles,” he noted.
Mendoza noted that “the manner of execution of the crime hinted professionals” in the Jones case. Jones sustained four bullet wounds from a .45 calibre pistol and that a wound in his right hand indicated he had attempted to shield his wife in their car. The wife survived, but also sustained a bullet wound.
A pending criminal case on the arms smuggling incident in Bataan is now pending before a Quezon City court, with names that sound either foreign or Filipino as respondents.
