Negros Occidental police director, Senior Supt. Rosendo Franco, yesterday directed the Murcia police to explain their failure to act on the request of a barangay captain and five tanod members charged for frustrated murder, to subject them to paraffin tests.

Re-elected Pandanon Silos Brgy. Capt. Leandro de la Torre and five tanod members were given 10 days by the Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Negros Occidental to answer frustrated murder and illegal possession of firearms complaints filed against them, in connection with Oct. 28 shooting incident, which led to the injury Mary Ann Marañon, who remains confined at the Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod City .

De la Torre said in a radio interview that the result of the paraffin test could have been part of their defense, to debunk claims that they were not behind the shooting of Marañon two months ago in Brgy. Pandanon Silos, Murcia .

Franco said the Murcia police could be held liable if they had committed lapses in gathering evidences. “If there is an incident involving firearms, we have to conduct paraffin tests,” he added.

De la Torre said he offered to subjected himself to paraffin tests as soon as he was invited for questioning by the Murcia police, in connection with the injury of Marañon.

Vehemently denying the allegations against him and his tanods, de la Torre claimed that the bullet that hit Marañon was fired by Kagawad Jose Magsico whose daughter he had defeated in the recent barangay elections.

Magsico debunked the claims of de la Torre.

De la Torre, who had sought help of Governor Joseph Marañon to clarify their involvement in the shooting incident, said he and his tanods even rescued the injured Marañon whom they saw lying on the road.

Police investigations showed that the incident was triggered by the intense political rivalries during the barangay election in Murcia .

Marañon remains bedridden and incapable of speech although doctors have treated the bullet injury in her head, her sister-in-law, Melly Marañon, said.*GPB

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