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Slain Batangas mayor had drug links, PDEA insists

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ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/news/07/04/20180704-antonio-halili-afp-1.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>This file photo taken on July 18, 2016 shows Tanauan mayor Antonio Halili (C) leaving a stadium after speaking to people who turned themselves in during a mass surrender of some 1,000 alleged drug users and pushers in the town of Tanauan, Batangas. Halili, on President Rodrigo Duterte&#x27;s list of allegedly narcotics-linked officials, was shot dead July 2, 2018, by a &quot;sniper&quot; in a broad daylight attack at a town ceremony, police said. Ted Aljibe, AFP</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA - The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Wednesday maintained that a slain town mayor is tied to the narcotics trade, echoing President Rodrigo Duterte&#x27;s accusation.Tanauan, Batangas Mayor Antonio Halili, who is known for parading suspected criminals, was gunned down on Monday by a sniper during a flag-raising ceremony.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/video/focus/07/02/18/caught-on-camera-moments-after-batangas-town-mayor-gunned-down">Caught on camera: Moments after Batangas town mayor gunned down</a></li></ul>Hours after the killing, Duterte said the mayor could have used his &quot;walk of shame&quot; campaign as a ploy to hide his involvement in illegal drugs.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/02/18/duterte-slams-slain-tanauan-city-mayor">Duterte slams slain Tanauan city mayor</a></li></ul>PDEA Director Aaron Aquino told ABS-CBN News that Halili was connected with a narcotics ring in Batangas and another mayor in Central Luzon who allegedly has drug operations in Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija and Pampanga. Aquino also said Halili was tagged in Duterte&#x27;s list of officials with alleged drug ties and the PDEA&#x27;s National Drug Identification System (NDIS). Halili would have been a target of an anti-drug operation, were it not for his untimely death, Aquino said.At Halili&#x27;s wake, his daughter Angeline claimed Duterte had been fed false information about her father, whom she said would rather die than be a drug lord. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/03/18/duterte-given-wrong-info-on-slain-tanauan-mayor-says-daughter">Duterte given wrong info on slain Tanauan mayor, says daughter</a></li>	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/03/18/tanauan-mayor-would-rather-die-than-be-a-drug-lord-daughter">Tanauan mayor &#x27;would rather die than be a drug lord&#x27; - daughter</a></li></ul>On the same day that Halili was killed, unidentified assailants strafed the vehicle of ARMM Assemblyman Sidik Amiril in Davao City. He survived the attack, but his aide, Berry Adas, succumbed to multiple gunshots. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/02/18/armm-assemblyman-tinambangan-sa-davao-city">ARMM assemblyman, tinambangan sa Davao City</a></li></ul>Amiril was also listed in Duterte&#x27;s &quot;narco-list&quot;, said Aquino. Nueva Ecija&#x27;s Mayor Ferdinand Bote of General Tinio town, who was shot dead Tuesday by motocycle-borne gunmen, had no known drug ties, said the PDEA chief. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/04/18/3-motives-eyed-in-nueva-ecija-mayors-slay-police">3 motives eyed in Nueva Ecija mayor&#x27;s slay - police</a></li></ul>Bote&#x27;s killing was likely politically motivated, Aquino said. Aquino also reiterated that the narco-list and the NDIS are not hitlists. &quot;It&#x27;s not true pag ikaw ay nasa (if you are in the) narco-list or sa NDIS ka ng PDEA eh you&#x27;ll be subjected to an extra judicial killing,&quot; he said. <div>-- Report from Angel Movido, ABS-CBN News </div>

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Wednesday maintained that slain Tanauan, Batangas Mayor Antonio Halili is allegedly tied to the narcotics trade, echoing a similar accusation by President Rodrigo Duterte.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Wednesday maintained that slain Tanauan, Batangas Mayor Antonio Halili is allegedly tied to the narcotics trade, echoing a similar accusation by President Rodrigo Duterte.