A MURDER complaint has been filed against a suspect in the killing of a journalist in Davao del Sur, according to Presidential Task Force on Media Security Executive Director Joel S. Egco.
In a statement on Tuesday, he said Brandie Mercado Campaner, also known as Bos-Bos, was identified by several eyewitnesses as the shooter of broadcast journalist Orlando “Dondon” Dinoy.
Mr. Egco said that Mr. Dinoy’s murder has been determined to be not related to his work as a journalist.
He added that investigators were able to identify three possible motives for his killing with the strongest being “personal grudge in relation to the victim’s other endeavors.”
“While the case is deemed non-work related, we will continue to monitor and work double time to catch his killers and whoever maybe behind them. There is no justification for murder,” he said.
Mr. Dinoy was shot six times in Bansalan, Davao del Sur on Oct. 30. He was a reporter for Newsline Philippines and a news anchor for Energy FM.
The case was filed at the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in Davao del Sur.
The eyewitnesses will be referred to the Witness Protection Program of the Department of Justice.
The Philippines ranks as the 7th deadliest country for journalists with 13 unsolved murders from Sept. 1, 2011 to Aug. 31, 2021, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists’ 2021 Global Impunity Index. — Russell Louis C. Ku