Media worker killed in Cagayan de Oro

A circulation manager of a newspaper in General Santos City was gunned down in front of the newspaper office before dawn Friday. The victim, Alfredo Velarde Jr., was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to his wounds, radio dzBB's Glen Juego reported. Velarde was the circulation manager of "Brigada News," the report said. A separate report on Asian Correspondent said a motorcycle-riding gunman shot Velarde just outside the newspaper office along NLSA Road in Lagao, General Santos City at 3:45 a.m. It said Velarde, 45, was waiting for the guard to open the gates of the "Brigada News" compound when the gunman shot him at close range. The assailant fled with a companion who was waiting on a motorcycle. Velarde died on the spot, while a female companion seated at the passenger side of the company's service vehicle was unharmed. However, the woman said she was not able to see the face of the gunman, the Asian Correspondent report said. The Asian Correspondent report also said police are reviewing the company’s closed-circuit television camera, which may have captured footage of the killing. Velarde is the first media worker from General Santos killed since the 2009 Maguindanao massacre, whose second anniversary will be marked on Nov. 23. — LBG, GMA News