By Freddie Lazaro
BANGUED, Abra — Police have arrested a 56‑year‑old public school principal accused of orchestrating the fatal shooting of a seven‑month pregnant teacher in Abra last May, a crime investigators say was driven by fear of exposure.
Authorities allege the suspect targeted Maria Elaine Besas Valencia, 36, to prevent her from filing criminal charges after she discovered that her minor daughter had been in a relationship with him since the child was 12 years old.
Police believe the principal sought to silence Valencia before she could pursue legal action.
A key witness identified the suspect as the gunman who fled aboard a motorcycle immediately after the May 8 ambush in Barangay Bumagcat, Tayum.
Investigators said he was the back rider who opened fire while another man, still unidentified, drove the motorcycle.
Valencia, riding with her husband on their way to a bus terminal in Bangued, sustained multiple gunshot wounds and later died at a hospital in Ilocos Sur.
Her unborn child also did not survive.
Police Capt. Cerel Gaspili, acting chief of Tayum Municipal Police Station, said the killing was “motivated by the suspect’s fear of being charged,” adding that investigators are working to track down the motorcycle driver and recover the firearm used.
The investigation continues as authorities prepare charges against the arrested principal.
