By Jennifer P. Rendon 

A construction worker did not survive after he was repeatedly hacked by his neighbor in Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo evening of June 29.

Carl Orcelino, 48, of Barangay Acuit, Barotac Nuevo, succumbed to hack injuries on his head.

Major Jose Nemias Pamplona, Barotac Nuevo police chief, said Orcelino and the suspect, 35-year-old Remer Palete, were both drunk when the incident happened.

Pamplona said the victim initiated the attack at a dimly-lit area of Acuit.

Orcelino was armed with a long knife while Palete was carrying a bolo.

A heated altercation first ensued between the duo.

At the height of their argument, Orcelino allegedly tried to stab Palete.

But the suspect was quick to swing the bolo at the victim’s head.

Orcelino was rushed to Don Jose Sustiguer Monfort Medical Center in Barotac Nuevo town but he was declared dead.

The suspect fled after the incident but voluntarily surrendered to police authorities at past 10 in the morning on June 30.

Pamplona said that personal grudges could have triggered the incident.

Palete is now detained while charges are being readied against him.