Masbate town councilor hurt in shooting

LEGAZPI CITY–A municipal councilor in Masbate was shot by an unidentified gunman after attending fiesta revelry in the plaza of Barangay Calumpang in Balud town before dawn Monday.

Senior Police Officer 1 Zandro Cabintoy, public information officer of Masbate Provincial Police Office, said Balud town councilor Hariet Estrella, 47, was about to go home when he was shot on the left shoulder around 2 a.m.

Quoting a police report from Balud, Cabintoy added the gunman also struck Estrella with a firearm on his head.

Estrella was rushed to Balud Municipal Hospital for medical treatment and was declared in stable condition.

Police recovered from the crime scene one fired cartridge of a .45-caliber.

Cabintoy said the police in Balud are still looking for leads on the perpetrator and the motive behind the attack.