A former convict who was playing mahjong in his neighbor’s house was shot to death in Talibon by a still unidentified gunman while a bystander was injured by a stray bullet on Sunday.

The masked suspect who had a getaway driver and a lookout waiting for him casually went inside the house in Barangay Poblacion at past 6 p.m. He said “ah ikaw diay ha” and shot the victim, Christopher Adona, 48, said Master Sgt. Ian Yuag of the Talibon Police Station.

Adona was able to slightly push away the gunman’s pistol but he was still hit by the bullet while one Arnulfo Valmoria who was beside the victim was hit in his right shoulder and chest.

The suspect finished off Adona who fell to the ground by shooting him repeatedly until he was motionless. He then fled the crime scene on board a motorcycle along with two of his cohorts.

Valmoria meanwhile was rushed to a hospital for treatment and already in stable condition.

According to Yuag, they are eyeing involvement in the illegal drug trade as possible motive behind Adona’s murder.

Yuag said that Adona was reported to have resumed involvement in narcotics trade after his release from prison this year after entering into a plea bargaining agreement.

However, police have not come across Adona in their monitoring of illegal drug activities in the town.

Adona who was a son of a retired police officer was arrested during a drug buy-bust operation in 2016. (AD)