By Jim Lloyd Dongiapon
An election officer was shot shortly after noon today, November 4, by tandem-riding suspects along Governor Gutierrez Avenue, Barangay Rosary Heights 9, Cotabato City.
Atty. Udtog Tago, Election Supervisor of Maguindanao, confirmed that the victim was Raufden Mangelen, Municipal Election Officer of Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte.
As per the initial information received by Atty. Tago and the City Public Safety Officers, Mangelen and his nephew had just finished their Friday prayer (Jumu’ah) and were about to head home when the assailants approached the victim’s gray Montero Sport car and shot them twice.
The victim sustained a gunshot wound in his left arm near the elbow, and was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
At around 1:00 PM, a relative of the wounded election official confirmed that he is now in stable condition following the incident.
Meanwhile, Atty. Tago spoke with Mangelen this afternoon. He then revealed that the victim cannot identify any motive behind today’s assassination attempt against him.
The election supervisor also shared that he was together with the victim at Barangay Kusiong in Datu Odin Sinsuat yesterday, November 3, to provide aid for the victims affected by Severe Tropical Storm Paeng, and the latter has not mentioned any threats to his life.
On the other hand, the Cotabato City Police Office (CCPO) has recovered two (2) empty bullet shells from a .45 millimeter pistol at the crime scene.
CCPO is now investigating the incident to identify the assailants and the possible motives behind the crime.