Assassination of Rev. Edison Lapuz and Mr. Alfredo Malinao
Narrative Report of the Documentation Team Visit

Here is the narrative report of the documentation team visit to the hometown of the assassinated Rev. Edison Lapuz.

Rev. Lapuz's name was reportedly on the list of about 30 personalities in Eastern Visayas included in the military’s OB (Order of Battle). The commanding general of the AFP in the region, Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, continues to claim however that the New People’s Army (NPA) themselves are killing people such as Rev. Lapuz and Atty. Felidito Dacut to gain the sympathy of the people.

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Assassination of Rev. Edison Lapuz and Mr. Alfredo Malinao
Narrative Report of the Documentation Team Visit
to San Isidro, Leyte

May 13, 2005

Profile of the Area: The place, San Isidro Leyte is three hours from the city of Tacloban, capital of Leyte province. From the town proper the barangay where the scene of the crime is and also the residence of Rev. Lapuz, Sitio Motor, Barangay Crossing, is about 15-minute tricycle ride. The area is located at the tip of the town, near the pier. There is only one exit and entry in going to the place. From the residence of Rev. Lapuz and the scene of the crime, it takes about seven minutes to access the main road.

Profile of the Victims:

Rev. Edison Lapuz : Conference Minister of North Eastern Leyte Conference (NELCON) UCCP; Coordinator of Eastern Visayas Convenors of Visayas Jurisdiction, UCCP; Chair of Katungod-Karapatan Eastern Visayas; founding member of Promotion of Church
People's Response (PCPR); main convenor of Justice for Attorney Dacut Alliance.

Alfredo Malinao, Barangay Councilor of Barangay Crossing, San Isidro, Leyte; a peasant leader and organizer.

Report:

A. The Incident

The incident happened at around 6:30 p.m. According to Emma Lapuz, the wife of Rev. Lapuz, they just came from the burial of her father. After the burial, they immediately went home.

They had their dinner and they went on to the house of Rev. Lapuz’s father. Rev. Lapuz went on to relax with his relatives and friends. All in all, there were 13 people who were there at the time of the incident, including the other victim, Alfredo Malinao. Emma was
sleeping just across Rev. Edison. When she woke up, she saw two unidentified men,
both wearing some kind of long sleeve shirts. One of them shot Rev. Lapuz two times, hitting him in the left temple and in the stomach. The other man shot Malinao in the center chest, near his heart. The gunmen were approximately two meters from the
victims. Rev. Lapuz died on the spot due to the shot on his temple. Malinao was at "50/50" condition when brought to the hospital. The doctors who attended Malinao told them that they could no longer revive Malinao.

The two gunmen still managed to shoot the parked vehicle of Rev. Lapuz on the right/rear wheel before they fled from the crime scene. The two went on to the two motorcycles waiting at about 210 meters from the crime scene where another two unidentified men were waiting. Each gunman joined a waiting motorcycle with driver, fleeing the place and heading to the main road.

B. Related Incidents

* Before the incident, the residents noticed two unidentified motorcycles passing by their place. Both motorcycles had two riders on them. One motorcycle even went to the tip of the port as if catching some fish. Before 6:30 p.m., the two motorcycles with two riders parked in a nearby store. The four men bought some soft drinks and stayed on for some time. All four of them were wearing helmets even when drinking.

* The sister of Rev. Lapuz told the documentation team the last October 2004 there were military men in uniform who went to the house of the father of Rev. Lapuz. The soldiers asked for (1) the work of Rev. Lapuz, (2) the residence of Rev. Lapuz in Tacloban City, 3) the office of Rev. Lapuz, and (4) other information related to the whereabouts of Rev. Lapuz. The soldiers even asked for the latest picture of Rev. Lapuz. The father of Rev. Lapuz entertained them because the soldiers identified themselves to be members of the UCCP.

* At the wake of Rev. Lapuz, May 14, 2005 at around 11 a.m. five soldiers went to the
house where the body of Rev. Lapuz lay. The sister of Rev. Lapuz identified one of the soldiers to be also one of the soldiers who went to the house of their father and asked for the whereabouts of Rev. Lapuz. Any legal authority did not warrant the "visit" of the
military men.

* At the burial mass of Alfredo Davis, where Rev. Lapuz was the celebrant, there were unidentified persons who were continuously vending all sorts of things, which is very unusual for a burial mass.

From the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP)

Contact Person:
Bishop Ebenezer C. Camino
Assigned to Visayas Jurisdiction
Cellphone 09189214975

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