COTABATO CITY — A gunman shot dead a candidate for the vice-mayoral seat in Tantangan town in South Cotabato on Monday morning.
In separate initial reports released an hour after the incident, the South Cotabato Provincial Police Office and the Police Regional Office-12 (PRO-12) said the victim, Jose F. Osorio, died on the spot from multiple bullet wounds.
Mr. Osorio, chairman of Barangay Bukay Pait in Tantangan, was shot six times with a pistol by a gunman inside his residential compound, killing him instantly.
Officials of the Tantangan Municipal Police Station and barangay leaders told reporters his killer managed to escape before responding volunteer community watchmen could reach the scene.
PRO-12 has ordered the local police to enlist the help of relatives of the slain Mr. Osorio and barangay officials in identifying his killer for immediate prosecution. — John Felix M. Unson