A Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) employee previously tagged as a person of interest in the killing of two security guards inside their office was shot dead Friday night, November 7, in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay.
The victim was identified as Ian Jude Soriano Nario, 47, a Revenue Officer II and Chief Processing Personnel of BIR–Ipil, and a resident of Barangay Pangi, Ipil.
Initial police investigation revealed that around 8:56 p.m., Nario and his wife had just left the Mega Bites Restaurant in the town center and were heading toward their vehicle when two unidentified men aboard a red motorcycle suddenly approached and opened fire. Nario sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the head and body, killing him instantly.
The gunmen immediately fled the scene toward the Rotonda area of Barangay Poblacion. Police led by PLt. Roel Bais responded to the shooting after a concerned citizen reported the incident. Authorities conducted dragnet operations and checkpoints across nearby areas but failed to intercept the assailants.
Nario’s killing came just three days after the brutal murder of two on-duty security guards—identified as Arcadz Dawila Muharal, 41, and Dante Miro Jamie, 52—inside the BIR office in Poblacion, Ipil. Both guards were found dead with gunshot wounds inside the office premises on November 5, their bodies discovered the following morning.
Police investigators earlier noted that the file storage disk of the BIR’s security camera system was missing, leading authorities to suspect that the killing was an inside job.
Local officials and investigators had also theorized that an “insider” from within the agency may have been involved in the double murder. Nario was among those questioned and later arrested on November 4 at a checkpoint in Barangay Tiayon for illegal possession of firearms under Republic Act 10591. He was released after posting bail just a day before he was gunned down.
Authorities are now investigating whether Nario’s killing is linked to the earlier murder of the two guards or if it was an act of retaliation or cover-up. The Ipil Municipal Police Station, in coordination with the Zamboanga Sibugay Provincial Police Office, continues to pursue leads to identify and apprehend the perpetrators.
Police have yet to determine the motive behind the attack.