Google map of Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao
SULTAN KUDARAT, Maguindanao – The local government here has put up reward money for any information leading to the identification and eventual arrest of persons behind the series of highway shooting in the past days.
“The town government is ready to work with our authorities for the safety of everybody in Sultan Kudarat and those traveling through our highways,” a visibly irked Mayor Shameem Mastura told reporters Thursday following an ambush that claimed the lives of two persons in Barangay Rebuken.
The victims were on board a white Toyota Wigo when waylaid by still unidentified gunmen on Thursday. Police identified them as Dayaba Kari, 67, legal consultant of the local government of Pagalungan, Maguindanao and his driver, Danny Apostol, 40.
Mastura said he believes the perpetrators, who according to witnesses were on board a Toyota Innova, were not from Sultan Kudarat.
Major Julhamin Asdani, Sultan Kudarat town police chief, said the ambush could either be work-related or tied to personal grudge between the victims and the gunmen.
On May 25, two men aboard a motorbike were also ambushed by gunmen along the stretch of the highway in Barangay Rebuken.
The victims were two young men from nearby Parang, Maguindanao who were aspiring to become members of the Philippine Army.
On the same day, two civilians on board a tricycle locally called “payong-payong”, were shot dead in another area of this town.
The mayor has appealed to his constituents to help make the town safe for everyone, including commuters who are passing by Sultan Kudarat’s national highway.
Aside from offering an undisclosed amount of reward money to help fast-track the resolution of the cases, Mastura also ordered the local police to be pro-active, establish more police checkpoints, and regularly provide road security in partnership with the Army’s 37th Infantry Battalion stationed in the area. (PNA)
