There have been a series of crimes in CDO, which made Kagayanons concerned about their safety and security.

However, the Cagayan de Oro Police Office (COCPO) urges the residents to calm down, noting that there is no crime surge in the city, only an increase in highly-publicized crimes.

See the list of highly-publicized crimes that occurred in Cagayan de Oro in July 2022 below:

July 12 – Siblings stabbed and killed in Creekside, Macanhan, Brgy. Carmen, by a parking boy.

• A parking boy caught going to Cebu to hide charged for the double murder case as the main suspect in the killing of siblings in Creekside, Macanhan, Brgy. Carmen.
• Carmen Police Station Commander Maj Mario Mantala Jr named the victims John and Barry Abecia and the suspect Bert Abapo Jr., all of the legal age, residing in Zone 9, Creekside, Macanhan, Brgy. Carmen. 
• According to Mantala, “hatred” was the main cause of the incident.
• The siblings acquired several stab wounds that led to their death. 
• Abapo has a history of homicide cases, while the Abecia siblings were under surveillance for illegal drugs in Brgy. Carmen.
• The suspect said that the siblings were the ones who started their conflict when Abapo brought a knife “kardaga” from their house and started to stab the siblings.
• The local police officers in charge are now waiting for the commitment order to the incident.                

July 17 — A hostage situation of a son (suspect) and a mother (victim) in Burgos Street, Barangay 13.

• Two police officers who responded to a hostage scenario were shot in the middle of a conversation by a handgun-wielding man near Burgos and Mabini Streets in Barangay 13 on Sunday afternoon.
• According to police records, Corporal Jay-ainn Bundulan and Corporal Jasin Abesamis responded to a report that a man subsequently identified as Elmo Montillano took hostage his widowed mother, Azucena, 84.
• In a phone interview, Senior Master Sergeant Ruben Gallur said that Montillano, 56, a resident of Barangay 13 held his mother hostage.
• Lt. Romeo Paro, the Divisoria police deputy station commander, tried negotiating with Montillano, who was armed with a 38 caliber revolver.
• During the negotiation, Montillano abruptly pointed fire toward Bundulan and Abesamis.
• Paro returned fire and hit Montillano with his firearm, according to Gallur.
• The suspect was restrained after receiving a gunshot wound.
• Montillano’s mother was also injured but not from a gunshot. 
• “The mother was bleeding from the head and some parts of her body. She might have been struck with a heavy object. At the crime scene, we found a fragmented plastic chair,” Gallur said. 
• All of the wounded were brought to the nearest medical facility.
• Gallur stated that they are currently investigating what drove Montillano to take his own mother hostage and how he obtained the weapon.
• Montillano, according to Gallur, will be charged with frustrated murder.

July 17 — A delivery rider was stabbed to death while his girlfriend was allegedly raped along the unlit Coastal Road in Brgy. Lapasan around 1:30 AM.

• While they were dating in Coastal Road, Cagayan de Oro City, a 20-year-old delivery driver was stabbed to death, and his 17-year-old girlfriend was allegedly raped by the suspects.
• Cris Sabaldana Semaña, a resident of Western Kolambog, Lapasan, was identified as the slain victim, according to a statement from Police Colonel Aaron Mandia, the city director of the COCPO.
• When Semaña’s minor girlfriend was allegedly sexually abused by one of the suspects, Semaña was then stabbed 10 times in the body.
• Mandia claims the suspect struck and kicked the female victim despite her attempts to escape.
• Semaña was immediately transferred to the JR Borja Hospital by Oro Rescue but was already dead on arrival.
• In the conducted follow-up operation, two identified suspects from the crime were Erwin Adame, 35, residing in Tabaco, Brgy. Puntod and Rolly Hantak, 41, residing in Brgy. Tablon, CDO. 
• The PNP arrested the two suspects in Coastal Road, Brgy Lapasan. 
• Adame, one of the suspects’ insisted on denying the charges, but the police in charge declared that both Adame and Hantak have a history of theft. 

July 19 — A parking boy was killed with a blow to the head while sleeping on the sidewalk, along PN Roa-Ferrabrel Streets, in Brgy. Carmen.

• The identified victim was Daniel Alisoso, 39, of Manticao, Misamis Oriental, in a police report.
• The victim was found lifeless by the police beat patrol assigned in a nearby station.
• The parking boy was found dead on the pavement of the Watson building at P.N. Roa Street, corner Ferrebrel Street, in the stated barangay.
• According to Police Lt. Lorenzon Ocon, Jr., deputy commander of Police Station 4, the victim may have been struck by a hard object while sleeping, resulting in a fatal cut on his forehead.
• An initial assessment concluded that the parking boy’s demise was unforeseen and that there was no struggle against his attacker.
• “Gibunalan gyud ni siya mintras natulog kay wala may sign of struggle ug maklaro pud nga walay commotion nga nahitabo sa area,” Ocon said. (Probably, he was struck in the middle of his sleep. There are no signs of struggle, and also, no sign of commotion happening in the area.)
• Investigators will conduct a follow-up investigation and communicate directly with the victim’s relatives, according to Ocon.

July 21 — A parking boy was killed in Divisoria, in front of Xavier University, with a stab in the neck using a broken bottle.

• Another parking boy was killed on Thursday evening when he was stabbed to death by his friend following a drinking session.
• Police Maj. Sebastian Chua, head of Police Station 1, identified Gary Doren, 21, as the victim and Peter John Aguilar, 23, as the suspect.
• Both suspect and the victim are Batang Mindanao members (BM 29).
• At around 9:30 PM, the incident occurred on Corrales St, in front of Xavier University.
• Both parking boys at the mentioned location have made the section of Divisoria in front of the said school their dwelling place. 
• According to Chua, the incident started when Aguilar, who was already drunk, became unruly and challenged anybody to a fistfight.
• Doren tried to calm down the suspect, but instead of listening, the suspect stabbed him in the neck and chest with a broken bottle, killing him instantly, according to police.
• It was revealed that the two recently had history from the Davao Penal Colony, where they were imprisoned for years. 

July 23 — A 28-year-old was shot and killed outside bars along Corrales Avenue around 1:30 AM.

• The victim was identified as Avelino John Mahorenos Betonio, a resident of Luyong Bonbon, Opol, Misamis Oriental.
• The victim was in a bar on Corrales Avenue with a group of people who had been drinking excessively, according to Colonel Aaron Mandia, head of the COCPO. 
• The group’s members got physical with another group of customers.
• The victim followed the suspect, who parked his pick-up truck near the DTI building, where the victim was shot. The suspect then sped off in the direction of Gaisano.
• Betonio was quickly brought to NMMC, but he died on arrival.
• Three suspects and witnesses have been identified but information about their identities was not released to the public.

July 24 — A 42-year-old male mechanic from Brgy. Agusan hacked to death in Naga, Brgy. Puerto. 

• According to the Puerto Police Station investigator, Staff Sgt Lemuel Tecson, the identified victim was Mark Gil, 42, from Brgy Puerto. 
• The identified suspect was the victim’s relative, Toto Paden, who was in a hurry to escape the crime. 
• Days before the crime, the suspect and his partner were in dispute. 
• In the initial investigation, as per the Puerto Police investigator, “jealousy” was the root cause of the crime. 
• PNP is also not closing the door for a follow-up investigation. 

The city’s recent string of killings alarmed the mayor, who expressed his desire to identify the causes of the violent incidents.

Meanwhile, netizens made equally divided opinions on mitigating the situation that the city is encountering. However, COCPO advises the public to refrain from sharing information without any verification from the right authorities to not cause panic.

In a recent press briefing, the COCPO also denies speculations that Cagayan de Oro is experiencing a crime surge.

“Yes! There have been highly-publicized crimes in Cagayan de Oro City recently, but the truth is, there is no crime surge. Our weekly average crime incident in the city decreased from 10 to eight. This is way lower compared to the crime incidents in other highly urbanized cities,” Police Lt. Col. Surki Sereñas, COCPO deputy director for operations said. – WhatALife!

Source: (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8)

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 Also read: No crime surge, says Cagayan de Oro City Police Office