By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

A barangay tanod and his nine-year-old grandson were killed after their house was broken into by unidentified individuals at Abada Escay in Bacolod City’s Barangay Vista Alegre early yesterday morning.

Police identified the fatality as 73-year-old Aurelio Rull of the city’s Barangay 8. Police, meanwhile, have requested not to identify the nine-year-old boy.

Based on information provided by the police, the unidentified suspects were believed to have forcefully entered the victims’ home at around 2:00 a.m.

The suspects then proceeded to stab Rull multiple times in different parts of his body and they also did not spare his adopted grandson, police added.

Rull was instantly killed on the spot after sustaining multiple stab wounds on the body and head, while his grandson was rushed to the hospital for treatment. The boy passed away yesterday afternoon.

In a separate interview with Barangay Vista Alegre captain Jose Ma. Leandro De Leon, Rull is currently in the local drugs watchlist, pointing out that his house has been subjected to multiple raids in the past.

A local resident who has refused to be identified, meanwhile, claimed that they suspect that Rull’s house was being used as an alleged drug den as they witnessed several unidentified individuals either going in or out of Rull’s house.

However, De Leon said even if the allegations against Rull are true, he didn’t deserve such cruelty.

De Leon also urged the remaining drug personalities in his barangay, who may now be afraid for their lives or afraid of the police but wanted to surrender to go directly to the barangay hall.

Meanwhile, police are still trying to determine the identities of the suspects involved in the killings./DGB, WDJ