CABANATUAN CITY – Police have arrested on Thursday evening the alleged gunman in the killing of Fr. Richmond Nilo, the police announced several minutes after the Catholic priest was laid to rest on Friday.
Chief Supt. Amador Corpus, Central Luzon police director, identified the suspect as Adell Roll Milan y Matias, a resident of Barangay Malapit, San Isidro, Nueva Ecija.
Corpus said Milan was identified from the rouges gallery of the provincial police’s intelligence branch by a companion of Nilo during the attack.
Milan, it turned out, was a drug surrenderer involved in gun for hire activities in Nueva Ecija, said Corpus.
He said the suspect was arrested at about 6:30 pm by operatives of the provincial police office under the supervision of Senior Supt. Eliseo Tanding, provincial police director, in Barangay Malapit, San Isidro.
Tanding said Milan has not yet said anything about the killing. “Panay basic information tungkol sa kanyang sarili ang sinasagot niya,” Tanding said of the suspect who was placed under inquest proceeding right after his arrest.
Corpus said it was Milan who was seen riding at the back of a motorcycle in the CCTV footage near the chapel of Nuestra Señora dela Nieve before and after the killing.
The sedan that was used by the other suspects was traced to be originally registered to a foreigner but has been subject of a deed of sale for at least twice already, police investigators said.
“With the evidence gathered, it can be deduced that this case is starting to uncover the real motive (behind the killing) and rest assured that the PNP is continuously exerting effort to arrest the other suspects,” Corpus said.
Meanwhile, some 15,000 people in black shirts and armbands attended the interment of Fr. Nilo after a concelebrated Mass led by Bishop Sofronio Bancud of the Diocese of Cabanatuan here.
Aided by an interpreter, Juliet Ocampo, a deaf mute who was among the people who was touched by Fr. Nilo at the College of the Immaculate Conception (CIC), expressed her views in the opening program.
Nilo, a member of the apostolate for the deafmute, served as president of the CIC. Fr. Antonio Mangahas of Gen. Tinio, Nueva Ecija, noted that while everyone was speaking of grief and calling for justice “no one talked about vengeance.”
“Pinatatahimik nila si Fr. Richmond pero lalong lumakas ang kanyang tinig,” he said.
Several men and women were seen crying when Nilo was finally laid to rest shortly after 12 noon.
