Prosecutor gunned down in Manila

A prosecutor was gunned down in Paco, Manila on Tuesday morning.

Initial information from the Ermita Police Station 5 identified the victim as 62-year-old Jovencio Senados who is the chief inquest at the Manila Regional Trial Court. 

The incident happened along Quirino Highway corner Anakbayan in Barangay 686, police said. 

Pursuit operations are ongoing to catch the perpetrators of the crime who were onboard a black SUV with plate number 8133A, according to a report by Isa Avendaño-Umali on Dobol B sa News TV. 

Motive of the crime is also being determined, police said.

According to Station 5 commander Police Colonel Ariel Caramoan, there is no report yet if the victim had received death threats prior to the incident. 

"Under investigation pa kung ano ang motibo ng suspect," Caramoan said in the radio report. 

Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) of the Manila Police District Command inspect a bullet-riddled sedan after an ambush along Quirino Highway corner Anakbayan in Barangay 686 Paco, Manila on Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Jovencio Senados, 62, chief inquest at the Manila Regional Trial Court, was gunned down by an unidentified assailant in broad daylight on the busy street.  Danny Pata

Police said the suspect's vehicle was last seen going westbound on Quirino Avenue toward Roxas Boulevard. 

Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said he has directed the National Bureau of Investigation to probe the incident. 

"We are shocked by the audacity of this attack. It highlights once again the grave peril that our prosecutors face each day in the discharge of their duties," Guevarra told reporters. 

Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento condemned the incident and said all resources of the Department of Justice would be utilized to give justice for Senados' death. —KG, GMA News