STATEMENT condemning the murder of an SK chairman. (Cotabato City government FB)
COTABATO CITY – Police have identified one of the two gunmen who ambushed and killed a Sangguniang Kabataan chairman and his brother over the weekend in the commercial district here.
“The PNP has identified and is actively investigating a person of interest who may have a direct link to the crime,” city police director Police Col. Jibin Bongcayao said in a statement Monday.
Bongcayao withheld the suspect’s name but confirmed that a follow-up investigation is underway, backed by CCTV footage from business establishments and city government street cameras.
The victims, Prince Mohaz Matanog, Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson of Barangay Poblacion 5, and his brother, Muamar Matanog, were on board a car traversing Sinsuat Ave. at about 10 a.m. Saturday when two men on a motorbike opened fire. Both victims were declared dead on arrival in a hospital.
Bongcayao said a police officer who first responded to the ambush was wounded when the suspects traded shots with lawmen.
One of the two gunmen was wounded in the back and is now the subject of a massive manhunt.
Cotabato City Mayor Bruce Matabalao has offered a P500,000 cash reward for any credible information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible. (PNA)