CRIME SCENE. Investigators cordon off the area where a cop, a jail personnel and a civilian were shot by motorcycle-riding suspects in Bayawan City, Negros Oriental on Saturday night (Feb. 18, 2023). The motive for the crime has yet to be determined but persons of interest have been identified. (Courtesy of the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office) DUMAGUETE CITY - Authorities have identified persons of interest in the shooting-to-death of a police officer and a jail personnel and the wounding of a female civilian during a fiesta celebration on Saturday night in Bayawan City, Negros Oriental. "Just this afternoon, I was in Bayawan City for a meeting with the local police, the RMFB 7 (Regional Mobile Force Battalion 7), and the BJMP (Bureau of Jail Management and Penology) to dig deeper into the circumstances surrounding the shooting incident," Col. Reynaldo Lizardo, provincial police director, told the Philippine News Agency on Sunday. Lizardo did not divulge the names of the suspects. A report from the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office identified the fatalities as Patrolman Rhulin Mar Abrasaldo, assigned at the 705th Mobile Company of the RMFB 7 based in Barangay Nagbagang, Sta. Catalina town, and Edwin Laag of the BJMP-Bayawan City facility. Civilian victim Winchita Jamin is recuperating in a hospital. Initial investigation showed that the female was the target of the two suspects and was shot first by two motorcycle-riding suspects. The policeman and the jail officer who were in the vicinity responded and were in turn fired upon by the suspects, Lizardo added. (PNA) }