NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – Three family members were killed while another was hurt in a massacre at Barangay Cansalongon, Isabela town, Saturday, November 7.
A 7-year-old boy, on the other hand, was able to hide during the home attack.
Police identified the fatalities as 57-year-old Ricardo Carpentero, his 59-year-old wife Consuelo, and their son, Carlo, 23, while injured was their daughter, Sheila Mae, 25, who was rushed to a hospital in Bacolod City.
Chief Inspector Anthony Grande, town police chief, identified the suspect as 27-year-old Jemar Carpio, of Barangay Guihulngan, Negros Oriental, but a resident of the area.
Grande said the family owned a computer shop and that the suspect always went there to play computer games but was not a paying customer.
The night before the incident, according to Grande, the suspect was at the shop playing when he was told by Carlo to go, after a group of youngsters wanted to use the computer units.
Grande said the suspect waited for the youngsters to leave after he returned to the victim’s compound at around 1:30 am.
The suspect begged Carlo to let him play but the latter refused as he was already closing the shop, Grande said.
Stabbing
Grande said that Carpio left and but returned to the victim’s house minutes later with a bladed weapon. The suspect first stabbed Carlo, who was at the kitchen outside, at the back, then his father Ricardo, who came out of the house to check the commotion. Ricardo succumbed to fatal stab wounds on his breast.
The suspect then entered the house and stabbed Sheila Mae at her lower right chest, then the mother, who sustained multiple fatal stab wounds, including a gutted neck.
Grande said the mother was able to crawl outside their house and asked for their neighbor’s help. She also told them that it was Carpio who stabbed the whole family.
Grande said that Carpio fled after the incident and remains at large.
Recovered from the crime scene was the suspect’s murder weapon, a 15-inch-knife, and his slippers, which were identified by his father, Grande said.
Grande said that Carlo died on the spot while his father was declared dead en route to a hospital in Isabela town. The mother, on the other hand, died on the way to a hospital in Bacolod City after she was being transferred.
‘I saw him stab my papa, lolo'
The 7-year-old boy, in an interview with Aksyon Radyo-Bacolod, said that he saw the suspect stab his father Carlo and grandfather Ricardo.
He said the commotion woke him up. He added, “I saw Jemar stab papa and lolo,” the minor said in the radio interview.
He then said that his grandmother and auntie were able to run before they were caught by the suspect. The minor said that he didn’t do anything, but instead he hid under the bed.
Meanwhile, Senior Supt. Samuel Nacion, acting director of the provincial police, said that hot pursuit operations against the suspect are ongoing. Nacion said he already ordered his men to investigate the case, which can lead to the suspect’s capture. – Rappler.com