Ricky Serenio, who formerly served as a bagman for the Berya drug group, was killed over the weekend by riding-in-tandem suspects in Bacolod City’s Barangay Pahanocoy. The notorious drug personality was reportedly heading home to Pulupandan after visiting family in Barangay Singcang-Airport for lunch.
According to authorities, after stopping by the Manville Royale Subdivision to pick up a friend, identified only by the alias ‘Clyde,’ the victim was executing a turn when his vehicle was blocked by three gunmen aboard two motorcycles, who opened fire.
Serenio and his companion attempted to flee but crashed a few meters from the site of the initial ambush.
The resulting gun shots also caused alarm and resulted in some motorists ramming into each other.
A passing police vehicle attempted to chase down two of the suspects, who eventually entered a compound at the barangay’s Purok Santa Antonia. However, in their attempt to flee, a local resident chased them down with a machete, which ended with police shooting to the suspects, wounding them both.
A third suspect, meanwhile, escaped.
Serenio was rushed to the South Bacolod General Hospital but was declared dead on arrival after succumbing to multiple gunshot wounds to the head, abdomen, and upper back.
The injured suspects, later identified as 30-year-old Allan Bustamante of Toboso and 30-year-old Bacolod City resident Joemar Dumip-ig of Barangay 14’s Purok Boulevard, were rushed to the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital after each sustained gunshot wounds to the leg.
In addition, an innocent bystander, a minor, was struck by a stray bullet during the incident but their wounds are said to be non-life-threatening.
Following the incident, Serenio’s younger brother, Mark John, said they believe the suspects are the same individuals involved in the killing of their sibling and father in 2017.
Meanwhile, another Serenio sibling, Biboy, appealed to those responsible to stop.
The former drug personality became controversial after he linked several high-ranking police officers in Negros Occidental and politicians from the Western Visayas to the illegal drug trade.
Following his revelations, the former drug group bagman was placed under the protection of former Moises Padilla Mayor Magdaleno Peña with Serenio moving the rest of his family to Pulupandan following the murder of his sibling and father./DGB, WDJ