Newly-elected kagawad in Davao del Norte shot dead

COTABATO CITY — A suspected gun-for-hire shot dead a newly-elected barangay councilor in San Isidro town in Davao del Norte in an attack on Tuesday.

Reports by the Catholic Radio Station DXMS and DXMY-Radio Mindanao Network, both in Cotabato City, on Wednesday identified the fatality as Jay Glen Dela Rama, who was elected barangay councilman in Barangay Sawata in Davao del Norte.

Dela Rama, a businessman, was a retired member of the Philippine Army, according to radio reports. He died in a hospital while being treated for gunshot wounds. 

A security camera recording that circulated on Facebook showed an attacker approached Dela Rama inside his roadside store in Barangay Sawata and shot him repeatedly and finished him off as he fell on the floor.

The suspect reportedly escaped by riding a Yamaha Aerox motorcycle parked nearby, driven by an accomplice.

Personnel of the San Isidro Municipal Police Station are still trying to identify the killer of Dela Rama. They are also trying to determine if the atrocity is related to his having been elected kagawad in Sawata during the October 30 synchronized Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, according to Wednesday's radio reports in Cotabato City.