Man killed by fleeing drug suspect in Batangas

INQUIRER FILES

LUCENA CITY — A man was killed on Saturday, May 10, after being run over by a car driven by a suspected drug trafficker fleeing police in Taal town, Batangas province.

In a report on Sunday, May 11, the Calabarzon regional police said officers were conducting “Oplan Sita,” a routine anti-criminality checkpoint, in Barangay Ilog at 2:30 p.m. when they flagged down a vehicle.

The driver, identified only as “Mark,” a resident of the area, sped off after an officer noticed a handgun next to the driver’s seat. The suspect nearly hit two police officers while escaping.

During the pursuit, the suspect’s vehicle struck two other vehicles along the provincial road in Barangay Muzon, Sta. Teresita town, before veering into a sugarcane field in Barangay Inukan.

There, the vehicle ran over a man identified only as “Manuel,” who suffered fatal injuries and died at the scene.

The suspect abandoned the vehicle and escaped on foot.

Recovered from the car were four plastic sachets of suspected shabu weighing 85 grams, worth about P578,000; a .45-caliber M3 submachine gun with two magazines and 13 bullets; and a .357 Magnum revolver with six bullets.

Police have launched a manhunt to locate and arrest the suspect.