TAGUM CITY, Philippines—Unidentified gunmen shot dead a tribal chieftain in Asuncion, Davao del Norte, on Monday night, the police said Tuesday.

Chief Inspector Mario Fontanilla, Asuncion police chief, said the victim, Feliciano "Datu Oloy" Ador, was driving home to the village of Cabaywa ariound 7:30 p.m. when attacked by the motorcycle-riding perpetrators.

The victim, who heads the local Mandaya tribe, died instantly from multiple gunshot wounds, Fontanilla said.

Ador was the third Mandaya chieftain attacked in Southern Mindanao in 2009 so far.

On July 8, Datu Florelio Andresan of Compostela Valley was also slain.

Andresan's group is locked in a land claim

In January, Rajah Carlito Buntas, head of the Mandaya chieftains, and his son Charlie were wounded when waylaid by armed men in Compostela Valley.