The former Bulacan Police director and regional officer of Highway Patrol Group (HPG) was shot dead by unidentified armed riding in tandem suspects in Calumpit, Bulacan on Wednesday late afternoon.
Bulacan Police director Col. Lawrence Cajipe identified the victim as retired Police Senior Superintendent Fernando Villanueva, 61, currently Governor Daniel Fernando’s chief of the Capitol’s Civil Security and Jail Management Office (CSJMO).
Investigation showed that the assassination occurred around 5:30 pm while the victim was on his way home to Pampanga.
Villanueva, was shot while sitting at the front passenger seat of his red plate government pick-up vehicle, with his driver bodyguard who survived unscathed.
Based on some witnesses, although the victim was wounded, he was able to get out of his vehicle and ran away but followed by the suspects and caught when reaching the Iba O Este-Bagbag Bridge where he was shot again several times causing his death.
Gov. Fernando immediately ordered Bulacan Police director Col. Lawrence Cajipe to thoroughly investigate the shooting incident as the police immediately conducted hot pursuit operation against the suspects.
Villanueva’s service as a valiant and courageous policeman in the province of Bulacan has been colorful where he has survived several battles particularly encounters with the New People’s Army from 1987 to 1995.
A “rose from the rank” police officer, he was assigned in 2008 in Region 3-Highway Patrol Group as regional officer and was also designated as police provincial director of Bulacan Police in 2010-2011 before he retired.
Villanueva was appointed in 2018 as head of Bulacan Provincial Civil Security and Jail Management and concurrent Provincial Jail Warden in 2019 but was immediately replaced by Ret. Col. Marcos Rivero as jail warden where Villanueva remained as PCSJMO head.
The slain of Villanueva was coincided with the visit of the newly installed Police Regional Office 3 (PRO3) regional director BGen. Val De Leon at Camp Alejo Santos in Malolos hours before the victim was killed.