Village councilman shot dead in Cavite

CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna, Philippines—Another village official in Cavite province was killed, less than 24 hours following the ambush of a village captain and his companion in a neighboring municipality.

Cenon San Jose, around 32-34 years old and a councilor in Barangay Niog 3 in Bacoor town, was shot dead inside the village hall at around 2:30 a.m. on Monday, the police said Tuesday. .

Supt. Edgar Roquero, Bacoor police chief, said the victim was working alone on the computer at the ground floor of the building when two unidentified men barged in and shot him several times.

San Jose sustained three gunshot wounds and died on the spot.

“At the time, the (village) captain had already gone to bed on the third floor (of the three-story building), while the on-duty watchman left for an errand,” Roquero said.

Another person, who worked as an errand boy in the village hall, was in another room on the ground floor.

The errand boy told police that he had heard the gunshots and suspected there were at least two assailants. When he peered out, he saw the men leaving on a car and a motorcycle towards Manila, but failed to identify them or make out the plate numbers of the vehicles.

Roquero hinted the murder had been planned, citing reports that suspicious men were seen “casing” the village hall weeks before the incident.

San Jose was murdered just a day after a village chief in Imus town was ambushed.

Noli Camaisa, chief of Barangay Anabu 2-E, and his companion, Wilson Picarra, died after unidentified men fired shots at the victim’s car in Anabu 2-F Sunday afternoon.