Ballistics tests have linked evidence recovered from the killing of broadcaster Adrian Loterte in Daraga, Albay, to a .45-caliber handgun associated with an earlier shooting investigation, the Bicol police said on Wednesday.
The PNP Forensic Group’s Firearms Identification Section established the match after examining bullet slugs and cartridge cases recovered from the crime scene and comparing their ballistic characteristics with evidence on record.
The findings gave investigators a concrete lead in identifying those responsible for Loterte’s killing, police said, but did not disclose details of the earlier shooting incident.
Loterte, an anchor of RBN News Television’s online program ‘Rabas Cun Rabas’ and a freelance broadcaster for DWIZ FM, was tending to his bakery in Barangay San Roque, Daraga on Oct. 12 when two unidentified gunmen attacked him. He was rushed to a hospital but was declared dead later that afternoon.
The motive for the killing is still undetermined.
Investigators are pursuing the lead provided by the ballistics report and are using forensic evidence and intelligence information to identify Loterte’s attackers.