By Jennifer P. Rendon
A 42-year-old woman died after an unidentified gunman peppered their nipa hut with bullets early morning of May 17, 2021 in Maasin, Iloilo.
Girlie Enriquez suffered multiple gunshot injuries on her leg, thigh, and abdomen, after an assailant strafed their farm house at Barangay Pispis, Maasin.
Enriquez was rushed to Ramon Tabiana Memorial District Hospital in Cabatuan town where she was declared dead on arrival.
Her live-in partner, 45-year-old Beltran Berona, survived.
Major Fernand Limbungan, Maasin police chief, said Berona reported to the police station that an unidentified suspect shot Enriquez at around 2:50 a.m. Monday.
The gunman apparently inserted the pistol’s nozzle in between the slats of their bamboo fence and aimed it at their sleeping quarters, which is just more than a meter from their fence.
Berona told police investigators that Enriquez could not be the target, as she had no known enemies.
The couple maintains a house at Poblacion, Maasin but stayed at their hut when they are too tired to go home.
While police could not rule the motive for the killing, Berona said he could be the most likely target.
For one, he was usually the one sleeping on a folding bed where the victim slept at the time the incident happened.
Berona also admitted that he was convicted for a homicide case that happened in Barangay Bagacay, Maasin in 2004. He managed to post bail when the warrant of arrest was issued.
He was convicted in 2010 and served his sentence at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City.
In 2018, he was released from incarceration after he was granted parole.
Police recovered from the crime scene several ammunitions for a caliber .9mm pistol.
Limbungan said investigation is going on to identify the possible suspect/s.
