CARP beneficiary shot dead

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – Police are probing the death of a beneficiary of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) who was shot by six unidentified armed persons at Sitio Lacanon 1, Barangay Libertad, Escalante City, Negros Occidental last Friday.

Killed was Hadjen Casipong, 41, of the said village.

Police Staff Master Sergeant Rodel Betic, case investigator of Escalante City Police Station, said that armed men arrived at the victim’s farm while he was cultivating the land.

Betic said the victim was alone when he was shot in the head, chest, and body.

Police recovered from the scene a fired cartridge of .45 caliber ammunition, and three fired cartridges of AK47 ammunition.

Betic said some residents heard gunshots, but the houses were far from where the shooting happened.

Police could not yet tell if the incident can be considered insurgency-related, though the area was in the upland part of the village.