Taguig barangay chairman shot dead

MANILA, Philippines - A barangay chairman in Taguig City was gunned down by unidentified men Tuesday night.

Aurelio Padilla, chairman of Barangay New Lower Bicutan, was on his way home from the barangay hall at about 9:30 p.m. when he was attacked as he came near a car repair shop along M.L. Quezon Avenue, the Southern Police District said.

The assailants, using 9mm pistols, repeatedly shot Padilla then sped away on a motorcycle. Investigators said the victim sustained four gunshot wounds.

Taguig police chief Senior Superintendent Arthur Felix Asis said Padilla was rushed to the Taguig-Pateros District Hospital for emergency treatment. He was later transferred to the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig, where he died at around 4 a.m. yesterday.

Asis said politics may be the reason for the attack. Padilla was serving his third and final term as barangay chairman when he was killed.