A90-minute rampage by  an apparently drug-crazed gunman resulted in the death of eight persons and the wounding of 11 others before he was felled by responding policemen in a crowded neighborhood in Barangay Tabon 1, Kawit, Cavite on Friday.

The suspect was identified as Ronald Bae, 40, of the same barangay. Witnesses said that the suspect’s rampage started at about 9:30 a.m. He began shooting everyone he met with a .45-caliber pistol, even chasing some of them inside their houses.  

Initial reports said that the suspect had a companion known only as John Paul, who served as reloader of Bae’s gun whenever he ran out of bullets.

Bae’s reign of terror ended at about 11 a.m. when he was killed while trading shots with responding policemen. He was declared dead on arrival at a hospital. Motive for the shooting spree was still unknown as of press time.

Police recovered from the suspect’s possession a .45-caliber pistol, several magazines and drug paraphernalia. Police claimed that the suspect was a member of a drug syndicate who had eluded arrest by not staying long in one place.

A report from the Cavite Provincial Police Office identified three of the fatalities as Alberto Fernandez, 55, Gilbert Toledo and Michaella Andrea Caimol, 6.

About 11 other victims are now in different hospitals with wounds on different parts of their bodies.

Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla and Kawit Mayor Reynaldo Tik Aguinaldo rushed to the scene of the crime and talked to residents of houses riddled by Bae with bullets. The provincial government has offered a reward of P100,000  for the capture of  John Paul, the alleged reloader of the gunman.

Malacañang, condemned the shooting rampage, declaring that the carnage would “fuel the government’s relentless efforts to clamp down on loose firearms.”

At a press briefing in Malacañang, Palace deputy spokesman Abigail Valte noted the large number of fatalities and lamented that some of the dead were children.

“This incident will certainly fuel the efforts of the PNP [Philippine National Police] in its drive against loose firearms,” she said.

With Reports From Anthony Vargas and  Catherine S. Valente