Suspect in killing of Carcar City mayor’s son nabbed

CEBU CITY (Updated) -– A construction worker identified as a suspect in the fatal shooting of Carl Vinson Apura, son of Carcar City Mayor Nicepuro Apura, was arrested in a town in Bohol at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Construction worker Jay Boy Lauron, 28, was arrested by the police in Barangay Tri Onion, Catigbian, Bohol, said Chief Inspector Teodulfo Manatad III, Carcar City police chief. Some reports say that Lauron is a relative of the slain Apura. Lauron was brought to the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CCPO) in Sudlon, Cebu City before nightfall. He wore a bullet-proof vest. Lauron, when presented to reporters, said he and Vinson, 25, were arguing just before he shot the mayor’s son in the head during a concert-disco in Barangay Valladolid, Carcar. Lauron said his dancing provoked Vinson since he, Lauron, was a good dancer. “Nasuko siguro siya kay maayo ko mosayaw (He could be mad at me because I’m a good dancer),” Lauron said. Vinson had dared him to a gunfight outside the basketball court, where the disco was being held. Lauron said he took up the challenge by immediately pulling a gun he kept in the pocket of his pants and shooting Vinson in public view. The gunshot pushed the fiesta revelers to run. He ran too and someone named “Jethro” helped him jump over a fence. He threw the gun over a bridge he passed. Lauron hid in his house and then went to Cebu City, where he took a boat to Tubigon, Bohol. He stayed with relatives in Bohol. Lauron said that had he known Vinson was the son of the mayor, he wouldn’t have shot him. Other reports said, however, that Lauron was a relative of the victim. Lauron said he visits his parents in Carcar on weekends and stays in Barangay Carreta, Cebu City where he works in a construction site there. He has a criminal record in Bohol. He said he is not a member of any fraternity. Carcar police chief Manatad, during the press conference, said the suspect was positively identified by three witnesses. Vinson had shaken hands with Lauron and had offered him beer. Despite Lauron’s arrest, police are still pursuing the case but will file a complaint of murder against the suspect. Senior Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, head of the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO), said a team from the provincial police’s Special Reaction Unit (SRU) will secure Lauron. Comendador apologized to groups or individuals whose names were dragged in the investigation. Police had considered a fraternity rivalry as one of the motives in the fatal shooting of Vinson. Mayor Apura, on the other hand, refused to believe the statements of Lauron. He said these were “absurd.” He said Vinson, who wasn’t armed at that time, did not go to the concert-disco to look for a fight. “Dili nako madawat iyang pasaylo. Naa ta’y hustisya. Gihunahuna unta niya usa niya gibuhat, (I cannot accept his apology. Justice has to be served. He should have thought first before he acted)” the mayor said. The mayor urged the police to conduct a thorough investigation and said that Lauron only carried out someone’s order. “Dunay mastermind. Gisugo ra na siya,” Apura said. The mayor also appealed to fraternity groups to stop staging frat wars and instead be at peace with one another. A 17-year-old boy was shot and injured when three suspected members of Alpha Kappa Rho (Akrho) fraternity strafed a group of youngsters late Wednesday night in the same place where his son was killed. The boy was hit in his right arm. Before the incident happened at 8:50 p.m., the boy was practicing a dance routine with a 15-year-old boy. The attackers, clad in hoods and were aboard a motorcycle, arrived and opened fire. The two young boys scampered to the woods and were unheard of for an hour. This worried their parents who then reported to the police that their sons are missing. “Paregla ra ‘to ilaha. Tripping,” said Inspector Arvie Arbius of Carcar City Police Station when asked what fueled the attack. He said the shooting was not related to Vinson’s killing. Arbius said the 17-year-old boy does not belong to any group and is not considered a suspect in Vinson’s death. Rico Osmeña, spokesperson of Tau Gamma, said in a text message their fraternity is reiterating its call for peace in Cebu. (DSM of Sun.Star Cebu)