By Glazyl Y. Masculino
BACOLOD City – An elderly man was killed after he ran amok and attempted to hack a policeman who responded to a call for assistance at Barangay 13, Victorias City, Negros Occidental yesterday.
Police identified the fatality as Hernani Pimentel, 66, of Barangay 11, who was suffering from a nervous breakdown.
Police Master Sergeant Valentin Cerdeña, who is assigned at Villa Victorias Substation responded to the report and tried to negotiate with Pimentel to calm down.
But Pimentel, who was armed with a bolo, allegedly attacked Cerdeña, according to Police Lieutenant Colonel Eduardo Corpuz, city police chief.
The policeman continued pacifying Pimentel, but the latter did not heed and continued attacking until the officer fell to the ground and rolled over to avoid the blows, Corpuz said.
Because of imminent danger, Cerdeña shot Pimentel to neutralize him, but Pimentel still kept on attacking him, he added.
Pimentel was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead.
A video showing a portion of the incident circulated online. Prior to the incident, Corpuz said Pimentel allegedly slit his neck.
Corpuz said the rescuers arrived to give him first aid but he allegedly harassed them, until he acted violently.
Corpuz said Cerdeña initially shot Pimentel four to six times, but they will subject the latter to a postmortem examination to determine the number of gunshot wounds he suffered.
Corpuz said Pimentel recently went home to his wife to rest after working as a sugarcane worker in Sagay City.
“May instances na unruly na daw siya, pero baka at that time hindi siya naka take ng medicine niya,” the police chief added.
Meanwhile, Corpuz said that Cerdeña was disarmed and restricted to the police station as part of the standard operating procedure to prevent him from influencing the investigation.
For his part, Cerdeña, over an interview with Aksyon Radyo Bacolod, said he somehow knew Pimentel, and tried to talk to him many times, but the latter continued to ignore him and even asked the police officer to shoot him.
“Nag approach ko sa iya, pero gatulok lang siya and wala gasabat, asta nga gin habyog niya na ang binangon niya kag galikaw na ko,” Cerdeña said.
Cerdeña said he exercised maximum tolerance, but he also needed to protect himself. He said he is ready to face probe.
