A barangay chairman was hurt when robbers shot him at close range inside his house in Novaliches in Quezon City on Thursday night.
Ernesto Tanigue was on his way home from a pawnshop, owned by his wife, when five unidentified men allegedly followed him in Good Haven Subdivision in Barangay Gulod.
The armed suspects allegedly broke into his house and tried to seize travelling bags containing pawned cellular phones, jewelries and P50,000 in cash.
"They were really monitoring the captain, they knew his moves," said a barangay councilor.
Tanigue allegedly refused to give the bags, leaving the robbers no choice but to shoot him. His bodyguard and driver reportedly were not able to protect the barangay official because the suspects were also pointing a handgun at them.
"The motive of the gunmen were to rob, they were really after the bags," said Chief Inspector Michael Coo of Quezon City (QC) Police District.
The victim was immediately rushed to the hospital after the armed robbers immediately escaped onboard motorcycles.
QC police conducted a follow-up operation to hunt down the suspects. Tanigue’s guard and driver said they still remember the faces of the suspects.
As of posting, Tanigue was still reportedly under observation in a hospital in QC.
Because of the incident, the village watchmen vowed to intensify their campaign against robbers in the area. With a report from Doland Castro, ABS-CBN News