Supporter of Gibo, Magsaysay mauled in Olongapo City

OLONGAPO CITY - A local supporter of Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential candidate Gilbert “Gibo" Teodoro and mayoralty bet Vicente Magsaysay was seriously injured when unidentified suspects mauled him in the first election related violence that erupted here Wednesday morning. Volunteer Rodemel Bautista, 27, was keeping watch over the outdoor ads of Magsaysay when seven men riding a black Mitsubishi Pajero attacked him and started vandalizing the billboard. Bautista suffered multiple bruises in the face, head, arms and body due to the incident. He went to a nearby clinic for treatment after the attack. The victim said the attackers, which he described as medium-built men in their late 20s, accused him of vandalizing billboards of Magsaysay’s political rivals as they were beating them up. The attack on Bautista was the first incident of election-related violence in the area this year. Magsaysay meanwhile condemned the mauling, saying it was “unconscionable and uncalled for," and promised to help Bautista bring the assailants to court. – John Bayarong and Andreo C. Calonzo/JV, GMANews.TV