Kerwin Espinosa campaign shooting is not a scripted act, the Albuera, Leyte mayoral candidate declared, directly responding to Richard Gomez’s recent comments.
Espinosa lashed out at actor-politician Gomez after the latter publicly insinuated that the shooting incident during Espinosa’s campaign was “scripted.”
In a statement, Espinosa said that this is not just ‘acting,’ and he is not like Gomez who is an actor.
He also raised suspicions about the presence of police officers from Ormoc during the shooting, which injured him, his brother, and a minor.
Espinosa questioned Gomez directly, asking if he had a hand in the deployment of those police officers, and whether a congressman had ordered their presence.
According to the Philippine National Police (PNP), seven police officers from Ormoc are now considered persons of interest, although no direct evidence has linked them to the incident so far.
As part of the ongoing investigation, Police Colonel Reydante Ariza has been relieved from his post as Ormoc City Police Chief.
Espinosa believes politics is behind the shooting, as his opponent for the mayoral seat, Leyte Board Member Vince Rama, is married to Karen Torres and is the brother-in-law of Ormoc City Mayor Lucy Torres-Gomez, Richard Gomez’s wife.