KIDAPAWAN CITY – A suspected gun-for-hire shot dead a village councilor here past 11 a.m. on Monday, police official said.
Lt. Col. Ramel Hojilla, city police director here, identified the slain kagawad as Nasrullah Manibpel of Barangay Nuangan.
Hojilla said Manibpel was driving his motorcycle towards home when the gunman shot him in his stomach.
According to Hojilla, the suspect exited towards the northern portion of the village on board a motorcycle.
Although few residents saw what happened, no one could identify the suspect, the police official said.
Hojilla, citing interviews with relatives of Manibpel, said the village councilor had been receiving death threats from unknown individuals days before his murder.
But Hojilla refused to disclose to media where the threats were coming from and the possible motive behind the killing as this might hamper their investigation.
Mayor Joseph Evangelista has issued a condemnation on the killing of Manibpel, and assured his constituents that his leadership will work closely with law enforcement units to bring to justice the killer.
Evangelista called the killing of Manibpel “an act of cowardice and violence.”
He also urged the public to be vigilant and coordinate with authorities should they have information that could lead to the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators. (Malu Cadelina Manar)
