Politician, son-in-law killed separately same day in Basilan
TIMRA Reports • 14:30 PM Fri Jun 10, 2022
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By:
John M. Unson
Victim Ujurun Gapal died while at the Lamitan District Hospital. (From Karl Ignacio)
CAMP SK PENDATUN, Maguindanao --- Gunmen shot dead in two attacks within six hours Thursday in Lamitan City in Basilan a defeated mayoral candidate and his son-in-law.
The first to perish was Ujurun Gapal, who lost in his bid for the mayoral post of Akbar town during the May 9 elections.
Akbar is a small town not too distant from Lamitan City, one of the two cities in the island province of Basilan.
The headquarters here of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR) announced Friday that Gapal was whiling away time, at past 4:00 p.m. Thursday, along a street in Barangay Matibay in Lamitan City when a man shot him repeatedly with a pistol.
The victim succumbed to bullet wounds while being treated in the Lamitan District Hospital, according to PRO-BAR.
The second victim, Wilbert Lao, was killed in an ambush at about 10:00 p.m. Thursday in Barangay Maganda in Lamitan City, while on his way home from his slain father-in-law’s burial.
Gapal was buried immediately in keeping with Islamic tradition of burying the dead within 24 hours from time of death.
Lao died on the spot from gunshot wounds sustained in the attack.
Investigators from the Lamitan City Police Office are certain the murder of Gapal and his son-in-law are related, perpetrated by one group.
Brig. Gen. Arthur Cabaluna, director of PRO-BAR, said Friday he has directed the Lamitan City police force to exhaust its best in identifying the culprits for prosecution.