SULTAN KUDARAT, Maguindanao del Norte — A 46-year-old man was wounded while his wife narrowly escaped harm after they were ambushed by unidentified gunmen in a brazen late-afternoon shooting on Thursday, April 16, 2026, in Barangay Crossing Simuay.
The victim was identified by police as Abdul Rahman Razid, a driver and resident of Barangay Nekitan in the same municipality. His wife, identified only as Zenaida, was unharmed in the attack.
According to an initial report from the Sultan Kudarat Municipal Police Station (MPS), the couple was traveling on a “payong-payong” — a motorcycle fitted with a sidecar — when they were tailed by two suspects riding another motorcycle.
At around 4:25 p.m., as they reached a stretch of the Cotabato–Lanao National Highway in Barangay Crossing Simuay, the suspects opened fire, hitting Razid. Despite the sudden attack, his wife managed to escape without injuries.
Concerned citizens rushed the wounded victim to the Cotabato Sanitarium and General Hospital, where he is currently receiving medical treatment.
Authorities who responded to the scene recovered one fired cartridge case, one dud bullet, and five live rounds of ammunition still inside a magazine, indicating the attackers may have used a firearm that malfunctioned or was not fully discharged.
Police have launched a hot pursuit operation against the suspects, who fled immediately after the shooting and remain at large as of this writing.
Investigators are still working to determine the motive behind the attack, as well as the identities of the gunmen.
The incident has raised alarm among residents, prompting authorities to urge the public to remain vigilant and to avoid the area while investigations are ongoing.
This marks another case of motorcycle-riding assailants carrying out targeted shootings in parts of Mindanao, a pattern that continues to challenge law enforcement efforts in the region.