SHABU SLAUGHTER: Four killed in Iloilo City stabbing linked to failed drug deal

By Jennifer P. Rendon

A failed shabu transaction between a supposed buyer and a peddler led to a stabbing incident in La Paz, Iloilo City that claimed the lives of four persons on Saturday night.

Police identified the fatalities as Johnny Provido Sr., 68, and his sons Johnny Jr., 40, and Joven, 46; and Tyrone Muya, 33, all residents of Barangay San Isidro, La Paz.

The incident also injured Tyrone’s brothers, 44-year-old Glenbert and 36-year-old Gilbert Jr.

Reports said the incident started after Johnny Jr., who was under the influence of alcohol, went to the adjacent Muya residence at around 9:40 p.m. on March 21 and confronted Tyrone.

Johnny Jr. was reportedly looking for a certain Badoy, the live-in partner of Tyrone’s sister Tami.

According to Virginia, the Provido matriarch, Johnny Jr. was irked after Badoy and Tami did not give him the shabu he was buying despite already paying PHP 1,500.

Virginia said Johnny Jr. was hurling expletives at the couple even before he left home.

Reports said he went to the Muya residence three times looking for the couple.

A heated argument ensued between Tyrone and Johnny Jr., which prompted Joven to check on his brother.

Virginia said her husband, Johnny Sr., also went out to look after their sons.

Police investigators have yet to ascertain who initiated the fight.

Reports said a commotion ensued between the Providos and the Muyas.

Minutes later, bodies were seen sprawled on the pavement.

Tyrone was rushed to West Visayas State University Hospital but was declared dead at 10:33 p.m.

Joven was taken to Iloilo Mission Hospital but was pronounced dead at 11:22 p.m. on Saturday.

Johnny Sr. and Johnny Jr. were brought to St. Paul’s Hospital, where the elder died at 12:04 a.m. and the younger died at 12:30 a.m. on March 22.

Glenbert sustained stab injuries and underwent surgery, while Gilbert Jr. remains in stable condition. Both are being treated at West Visayas State University Hospital.

Police reports noted that witnesses’ accounts identified the surviving Muya brothers as responsible for the deaths of the Provido father and sons.

They are considered under hospital arrest.

Gilbert Muya Sr., the 77-year-old patriarch, insisted that it was the Provido camp who started the fight.

He claimed his son Tyrone was sitting outside their home when Johnny Jr. asked about the whereabouts of Badoy and Tami, from whom he had paid PHP 1,500 for shabu.

This led to a confrontation between the two.

It was allegedly Joven who punched and stabbed Tyrone.

When Glenbert and Gilbert Jr. saw what happened, they came to the rescue of their brother and stabbed the three Providos.

Tyrone’s mother claimed Badoy and Tami rarely stayed home.

She added she was not aware if her daughter and Badoy were involved in illegal drug peddling.

Village officials said Tyrone was an Oplan Tokhang surrenderer and had undergone the Community Based Rehabilitation Program.

Oplan Tokhang was a controversial door-to-door anti-drug campaign launched under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte in 2016, in which police visited the homes of suspected drug users and dealers to persuade them to surrender. The Community Based Rehabilitation Program is a government intervention that provides counseling, livelihood training, and support services to drug surrenderers as an alternative to incarceration.

The Providos had been staying at San Isidro village after being relocated to the area.

Officials are not discounting the possibility that they are also involved in illegal drugs.