3 suspects in murder of ex-vice mayor, son nabbed in Pasay
JAMES Bohol (FB)
TACLOBAN CITY – The Police Regional Office-8 has arrested three suspects in the killing of former Abuyog, Leyte Vice Mayor James Bohol and his son Carlo James.
The victims were found dead in Silago, Southern Leyte on Tuesday, June 30.
The suspects were apprehended in Pasay City with assistance from the Anti-Kidnapping Group and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group after their movements were tracked through the vehicles they used.
The suspects, all residents of Basey, Samar, allegedly abducted the victims in Barangay Santa Cruz, Mayorga, Leyte, at the victims’ warehouse, where one suspect, Mak, requested an extension for a check payment from James.
He claimed that James threatened him and his family, which led him to abduct the victims and bring them to Silago and leave them there.
However, one of Mak's accomplices argued with Carlo James, resulting in the victims’ deaths, and their bodies dumped in a ravine. The victims’ hands were tied with wire and their mouths were gagged.
Police Brig. Gen. Jason Capoy, PRO-8 director, reported that the Provincial Intelligence Unit (PIU) gathered intelligence to locate the owner of the Mitsubishi GLX Mirage getaway vehicle abandoned by the suspects in Barangay Tingib, Basey.
Although the owner could not be found in the barangay, the car rental company provided a Global Positioning System footage recorder from the vehicle.
Personnel of the Silago Municipal Station, along with the PIU, searched the area where the car stopped on the Abuyog-Silago Road, specifically in Barangay Tubod.
The victims were eventually found on the Abuyog-Silago Road in Barangay Imelda, Silago.
Police determined the location where the Mitsubishi Mirage was washed before the suspects abandoned it in Barangay Tingib.
The suspects transferred to a Toyota Hilux, which they abandoned in Sariaya, Quezon, prior to their arrest in Pasay.
Initial investigation said the victims died of stab wounds. Follow-up investigation is ongoing.
Bohol, also a businessman, ran for reelection in 2025 but lost. Silago is adjacent to Abuyog and borders Leyte and Southern Leyte provinces.