Gunman kills journalist inside Davao del Sur apartment

A still unidentified gunman shot dead a reporter inside an apartment in Bansalan, Davao del Sur, on Saturday night, October 30.

Bansalan police chief Major Peter Glen Ipong said the victim, Orlando “Dondon” Dinoy, was killed inside his apartment cum boarding house on Mother Ignacia Street in Poblacion Uno, Bansalan town past 6 pm.

Dinoy, a Dabawenyo, was a reporter for the online news site Newsline Philippines and host of a blocktime program at Energy FM radio station in Digos City, according to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP). He was also a former correspondent of Sunstar Superbalita-Davao and the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Police said Dinoy died of multiple gunshot wounds.

In its alert, the NUJP said Dinoy was inside a makeshift broadcast booth when the gunman shot him at close range.

In a phone interview with Rappler, Ipong said investigators were still gathering information and clues in the hope of establishing the killer’s motive.

Ipong said one of the theories was that Dinoy was murdered as a result of his media work.

The town police have submitted an initial report and assessment to the Davao del Sur police office.

Ipong said investigators would soon sit down and talk to members of Dinoy’s grieving family in the hope of getting more information.

Investigators have taken Dinoy’s mobile phone and were checking it for leads, Ipong said.

He said the town police would also check if there are closed-circuit television cameras near the crime scene, and see if the gunman was caught in any recording.

On Sunday, October 31, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said he will also order an investigation into the killing, to be led by the Presidential Task Force on Media Security.

Newsline Philippines condemned the murder of Dinoy even as it called on authorities to speed up their investigation to determine the motive for the killing.

“We cry for justice!” read part of its statement. – with reports from Jairo Bolledo and Herbie Gomez/Rappler.com