Gunmen kill Sultan Kudarat midwife

KIDAPAWAN CITY – Gunmen shot dead a barangay midwife in Bagumbayan town in Sultan Kudarat province while on her way onboard a motorcycle to an assignment in Barangay Monteverde, around 10 a.m., Sunday, the police said Monday. Killed was Elvira Iligan, 25, of Barangay Monteverde in Bagumbayan town, who suffered multiple gunshots on her back. She died instantly, said Bagumbayan Police chief Chief Inspector Junie Buenacosa. The driver of the motorcycle identified as Felix Voltaire Tan was hit by stray bullet and is in critical condition, Buenacosa said. Authorities recovered shotgun spent shells from the crime scene. Chief Superintendent Benjarde Mantele, regional police director for Southwest Mindanao (Region 12), said he organized a special task force to investigate the killing. Mantele admitted they are facing a blank wall as to the motive behind the midwife’s death. “Based on our initial investigation, the killing is caused by a personal grudge. But we don’t discount the possibility it’s work-related," said Mantele in a radio interview. Mantele said Iligan’s killing took place just few hours after the massacre of five members of the Fegurac family in nearby Senator Ninoy Aquino town also in Sultan Kudarat province. The towns of Bagumbayan and Senator Ninoy Aquino are in the hinterlands of Sultan Kudarat. — Malu Cadeliña Manar/VS, GMA News