By Jennifer P. Rendon
A 62-year-old man voluntarily surrendered after he allegedly hacked his nephew early morning of May 30, 2023 in Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo.
Noriel de Pedro, a construction worker from Barangay Cruz, Barotac Nuevo, turned himself in to police around 8 a.m. on Tuesday.
Prior to the hacking episode, de Pedro and the victim, Robert Lecoto, 34, had a heated argument.
“It was just a petty discussion that led to a verbal tussle,” Major Jose Nemias Pamplona, Barotac Nuevo police chief, said.
Since Lecoto was drunk, the argument escalated.
At around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, Lecoto went to de Pedro’s house and confronted him. But de Pedro was already armed with a bolo and used it to attack the victim after the latter attempted to get inside the suspect’s house.
Lecoto was hit on the right arm. His ring finger got severed apart from lacerated wounds on his middle finger and thumb.
The victim was immediately taken to Don Jose Sustiguer Monfort Medical Center for treatment while the suspect fled after the incident.
He surrendered seven hours later.
Pamplona said the victim’s family has yet to decide if they want to pursue criminal charges against the suspect.
