Former prison guard shot dead in Cotabato

COTABATO CITY, Philippines - Gunmen killed on Wednesday night a former guard who foiled four jailbreaks while still working at the Maguindanao provincial penitentiary here.

The victim, Mohammad Mamocao, 48, died on the spot from multiple gunshot wounds.

Investigators said Mamocao was about to close a small family-owned store along a thoroughfare in Buaya-Buaya area in Barangay Kalanganan west of Cotabato City when the pistol-wielding suspects attacked.

The suspects hurriedly escaped using a motorcycle parked nearby.

Relatives said Mamocao, while still prison guard, prevented four attempts by inmates at the Maguindanao provincial jail to bolt from their cells.

Police investigators are still trying to establish the identities of his killers and their real motive for the attack.

Mamocao was earlier rumored to have joined a group of villagers working as secret military informers helping monitor activities of the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.