Barangay chairman, bodyguard killed in North Cotabato ambush

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines — A barangay chairman and his security escort were killed in an ambush Tuesday in Carmen, North Cotabato.

The 56-year-old Joaquin Segumban, chairman of Barangay Tonganon in Carmen, and Joey Gamutia, 57, were on their way home from the municipal center when gunmen fired at their vehicle, killing them both on the spot.

The suspects immediately escaped on motorcycles parked nearby.

Chief Inspector Aldrin Gonzalez, spokesman of the Police Regional Office-12, said personnel of the Carmen municipal police are still investigating on the incident.

The slain barangay chairman was known to be supportive of the crackdown on illegal narctocis and was also active in helping the local police and the military monitor the movements of Islamic State-inspired militants in Carmen.

More than 20 members of the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, which uses the black Islamic State flag, were killed by pursuing soldiers in a spate of encounters in Carmen early this year.