This cropped up as 38-year-old Felipe Caban, a teacher of the Badiang Elementary School in Digos City, Davao del Sur, was shot dead by two men in front of hundreds of pupils last Thursday.
Police said Caban was at the schools frontyard when the gunmen appeared and fired at him as the schoolchildren, who were rushing to their respective classrooms after the flag ceremony, watched in horror.
"It was very sad knowing the impact of the shooting on the young pupils who must have been shocked by the scene," said Southern Mindanao police director Isidro Lapeña.
Authorities were still probing the motive for Cabans killing although the teacher was said to be an "asset" of the military intelligence unit. Military intelligence sources confirmed Cabans affiliation with them.
Found in Cabans possession were a caliber .38 pistol and an identification card indicating he was affiliated with the military intelligence unit.
Police, however, were also looking into the teachers alleged involvement in a "love triangle" and in an alleged rape case in the neighboring town of Matan-ao.
Investigators were also exploring the alleged old grudge between him and his father-in-law as a possible motive.