BAGUIO CITY – A taxi driver died after he was allegedly hammered to death by his young passenger at Dominican-Mirador, here Sunday dawn.
Police authorities identified the fatality as Erwin Cueno, a taxi driver who hails from Naguey, Atok, Benguet but is presently residing at Puguis, La Trinidad, Benguet while the arrested suspect was named as Zaldy Matalang Coycoydo, 18, a construction worker and a resident of Bakakeng Central, Baguio City.
Initial police investigation showed that concerned residents in the area noticed the bloodied taxi driver inside his vehicle after it stopped in a certain place in the barangay and without hesitation, they decided to prevent the passenger from leaving the area while reporting the matter to the police.
The victim reportedly sustained severe head injuries as a result of the hammering that he received from the arrested suspect who was allegedly collared by residents in the area after he alighted from the vehicle.
A bloodied hammer was recovered by the responding police operatives from inside the taxi which will be used as an evidence against the arrested suspect.
Probers theorized that the suspect might have allegedly attempted to rob the victim of his earnings but the later resisted that resulted into a commotion inside the vehicle until the suspect struck him with a hammer several times on his head.
By Dexter A. See
