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Rubén Feliciano, candidate for mayor of San Fernando | CDN digital photo via Rosalie Abatayo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Controversial San Fernando City, Cebu mayoral candidate Ruben Feliciano was shot and killed by unknown perpetrators outside his rented home in Barangay Apas, Cebu City.
His nephew Kim was not spared and died after suffering a gunshot wound to the body in the first recorded shooting incident in Cebu City in 2021.
Police are still in their in-depth investigation to unmask the perpetrators and motives for the murder of the businessman and former mayoral candidate, but Police Captain Renz Talosig said they will look at all angles.
Feliciano, a businessman, was a controversial candidate in the 2019 elections when he ran against current Mayor Lakambini “Neneth” Reluya and was singled out as a possible suspect in the ambush of the mayor and her husband before the elections.
Reluya and her husband, the former Panadtaran barangay captain and president of the ng mga Barangay League, Ricardo “Nonoy” Reluya, were ambushed in the town of Talisay in January 2019, where Ricardo was killed.
Mayor Reluya said the ambush was politically motivated and this led to an investigation into whether his political opponent, Feliciano, had anything to do with it.
Feliciano cooperated with the investigation and even submitted to the police to clear his name days after the incident. He firmly denied the allegations and, to this day, his alleged connection to the ambush remains unproven.
Still, the controversy continued until the 2019 elections.
Four of Feliciano’s supporters had allegedly sparked an armed riot near the home of a municipal council candidate in Barangay Bugho.
The four men who were arrested in the mountainous barangay of Bugho, San Fernando city, were among the sympathizers and volunteers who joined his political outing and allegedly shot at the military.
The military then had a command post in Barangay Magsico, a neighboring barangay of Bugho.
After the incident, Feliciano denied that his men were armed and shot at any police authority, much less the military.
He called for a fair investigation of the incident and claimed that the investigation was controlled by Reluya to gain traction in the elections.
After the bloody elections in San Fernando that year, which resulted in the deaths of four officials, Reluya won the tight election with a margin of more than 6,000 votes against Feliciano.
After the elections, Feliciano stepped off the media radar and reportedly returned to his business ventures until the shooting incident on January 1, 2021, more than a year and a half after the election.
Feliciano was found dead in front of his rented house, where he had been staying since the first week of December 2020.
His landlady said that Felciano started renting the place in September 2020 but left for a while before returning in the first week of December.
Neighbors said that he was a “good man” and of “good disposition”, and knew that he was a businessman who owned certain establishments in the area, although the police have not confirmed this information.
The body of the former candidate for mayor of San Fernando, Rubén Feliciano, is being treated after he was shot and killed by as yet unidentified assailants. | Pablo Lauro
Neighbors said a white van passed the night of the incident and gunmen shot Feliciano and his nephew several times.
Police found two gunshot wounds to Feliciano’s arm and body, while Kim was hit in the side. Kim died in the hospital where he was rushed, but Feliciano died on the spot.
Let’s look at these angles of his death. He is also a businessman, he can be related to business. He is a candidate for the sauna, possible politics. But for now, we look for the suspects first, ”said Talosig.
The Mabolo Police Station is asking witnesses to come forward and testify about the killings so that the police can find a clue to the deaths of Feliciano and his nephew.
Police will also check closed circuit television (CCTV) in the area to see if the incident was caught on camera.
Talosig awaits the cooperation of Feliciano’s partner so that they can find a clue to the businessman’s death. He also looks forward to the family’s cooperation for a faster investigation. / rcg
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