N. Cotabato village exec eludes ambush but bullets hit septuagenarian

KIDAPAWAN CITY– A village chairperson in North Cotabato escaped an assassin’s bullets, which instead hit a retired teacher, early Tuesday morning in Tulunan town, police said.

Tulunan town police head Chief Insp. Judgie Barotas said Barangay Sibsib chair Joemar Almirante was biking in front of the village hall grounds around 5:50 a.m. when suspects aboard an SUV suddenly appeared and opened fire at him.

Investigation showed that a man sitting at the passenger’s side of the SUV shot at Almirante three times but the village official miraculously managed to avoid the bullets, which instead ended in the abdomen of 72-year-old Nelly Nacano.

Police said the gunman used a caliber-45 pistol.

Barotas said responding village watchmen rushed Nacano to the hospital for treatment.

According to police, Almirante was one of the five village chairpersons in North Cotabato who were included in the drug watch list of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

North Cotabato police spokesperson Supt. Bernard Tayong said North Cotabato police chief Senior Supt. Maximo Layugan has ordered a thorough investigation on the incident as well as the deployment of police personnel to secure the village. /kga