In the later part of the 40s and early part of the 50s, the
name Asiong Salonga brought fears and chills to the residents of
Tondo and its environs. Salonga, a dreaded and notorious gang
leader, and the likes of Totoy Golem, Toothpick, Boy Zapanta and
other toughies that time, Tondo became a bloodbath of gangland
violence. As they say, Crime Does Not Pay! Salonga, only 27, met
his untimely death in 1951. He was gunned down during a drinking
session. Here’s that fateful day— from the front page of The
Manila Chronicle. October 8, 1951  Gang Rivalry Ends Career of
‘Toughie’; Police Look into Political Angle of Fatal Shooting
Nicasio Salonga, alias Asiong Salonga, 27, Tondo’s No.1 “tough
guy,” reached the end of his shady career when he was shot and
killed on Coral street, Tondo, at 5 p.m. yesterday. Apparently a
victim of gangland vendetta and double-cross, Salonga toppled,
mortally wounded in the head, from a sitting position atop a
store counter at No.100 Coral down to the sidewalk gutters. A
well-placed sho