A Philippines mayor, his wife and 10 others were shot dead during a police raid on Sunday, BBC reported. Reynaldo Parojinog, the mayor of the city of Ozamiz on Mindanao island, was publicly accused by President Rodrigo Duterte (pictured above) of having links with the illegal drugs trade.
The incident took place when police officers raided Parojinog’s house, and the mayor’s security guards allegedly started firing. “We met with a volley of fire by Parojinog’s security guards,” said Northern Mindanao chief of police Timoteo Pacleb, according to Reuters.
However, the mayor’s spokesperson denied any exchange of fire. Provincial Police Chief Jaysen De Guzman said that they have recovered rifles, cash and illegal drugs from the house.
“The administration vowed to intensify the drug campaign,” Ernesto Abella, presidential spokesperson said, according to AP. “The Parojinogs, if you would recall, are included in [Duterte’s] list of personalities involved in the illegal drug trade.”
Parojinog is the third Philippines mayor to have been killed in the government’s narcotics crackdown. The police have claimed that they killed suspects only in self defence.
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