Controversial Tanauan mayor shot during flag ceremony

Mayor Antonio Halili of Tanauan City in Batangas province was shot during Monday’s flag raising ceremony of his office.

Halili was in “critical” condition after he was hit in the chest, said Superintendent Renato Mercado, Tanuan police chief.

“Tumagos sa kanyang dibdib, so medyo critical sya ngayon,” Mercado said in an interview over dzBB.

The mayor was reportedly rushed by his close-in security aides to an undisclosed hospital in Sto. Tomas, Batangas, Chief Superintendent Edward Carranza said in a separate interview with the radio station.

Carranza suspected that the still unidentified assailant shot the victim from a distance.

Halili, who became known for shaming alleged drug pushers and crime offenders by parading them around the city, was shot as the national anthem was about to end, a dzMM report said. /cbb