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PNP says probing 5 persons of interest in tabloid photographer's shooting

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Zyann Ambrosio, ABS-CBN News

MANILA (UPDATED) — The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday said it has identified 5 persons of interest in the shooting of tabloid journalist Rene Joshua Abiad and 3 others. Citing findings from Quezon City police, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said the hit appeared to be carried out by professionals as the gunmen used duplicate registration plates in their getaway vehicles.&quot;If there is any indication itong mga nagtangkang mag-ambush sa ating kapatid sa media, this involves a professional group so nag-iingat tayo sa pagbigay ng [impormasyon],&quot; Fajardo said.(The ambush of our media comrade has indications of the involvement of a professional group, that is why we are being careful in releasing information.)Police were also working on leads on the suspects, but Fajardo declined to provide additional details as follow-up operations were ongoing. &quot;We don&#x27;t want to preempt but [police] already have the lead. Kung di matatapos ang linggo ng ito, they are confident na makukuha nila ang suspek,&quot; she said.(They are confident in arresting the suspects by the end of this week.)Fajardo also said that police have yet to determine the motive of the shooting.In a public briefing on Tuesday, Quezon City police chief BGen. Nicolas Torre III said cops have been deployed to serve as Abiad&#x27;s security detail.Most of the officers were assigned to secure the photographer&#x27;s home and family members, including a sibling scheduled to travel abroad.&quot;Sa ngayon ay mayroon tayong naka-detail na security sa bahay nila at sa ibang mga kamag-anak niya. May isa siyang kapatid na about to go abroad, sine-secure pa rin natin iyon,&quot; Torre said.Abiad was ambushed on Friday by yet unidentified gunmen and suffered an arm injury following the incident.A 4-year-old child was also hurt in the shooting but died over the weekend.Authorities earlier said Abiad&#x27;s ambush may have had links to his work documenting a deadly seven-year-old crackdown on illegal drugs.As a police beat reporter for Remate, Abiad is a witness to some drug cases and had been called to testify on them, police also said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/30/23/gunmen-wound-journalist-in-philippines">Gunmen wound journalist in Philippines</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/02/23/batang-nabaril-kasama-ng-mamamahayag-pumanaw-na">Pamangkin ng tabloid photographer na kasamang na-ambush, pumanaw na</a></li></ul>Abiad&#x27;s shooting is the latest in a string of attacks on journalists in the Philippines, a country long considered to be among the most dangerous in the world for newsmen to work in.<div>RELATED VIDEO: </div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2705861" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

PNP said it has identified 5 persons of interest in the shooting of tabloid journalist Rene Joshua Abiad and 3 others. 

PNP says probing 5 persons of interest in tabloid photographer's shooting

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PNP says probing 5 persons of interest in tabloid photographer's shooting

Zyann Ambrosio,

ABS-CBN News

Published July 03, 2023 02:18 PM PHT

|

Updated July 04, 2023 03:51 PM PHT

Read More:

PNP

Philippine National Police

journalist

shooting

crime

Rene Joshua Abiad

Remate

photographer

ambush

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