Reporter gunned down in his home in southern Philippines

Reporter Orlando “Dondon” Dinoy died instantly when he was shot six times in the chest and abdomen in his apartment in Bansalan, in Davao del Sur province, on the evening of 30 October.

The gunman had initially shouted to Dinoy from the street. When Dinoy went down in response to the call, the gunman fired two initial shots that missed. He then chased Dinoy into his home, where he fired the six shots that killed the journalist.

A reporter for the regional news website Newsline Philippines and a programme presenter on radio Energy FM, Dinoy covered local news, especially development issues and crime, according to a statement issued by Newsline Philippines editor Editha Z. Caduaya.

Cold-blooded and premeditated

“Orlando Dinoy’s murder is particularly shocking because it was carried out in a very cold-blooded manner and with a great deal of premeditation,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “Investigators must therefore be alert for evidence that allows them to identify those responsible as quickly as possible, and supports the hypothesis that it was linked to the victim’s journalistic activities.”

The Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS), the national agency responsible for investigating this kind of case, said in a statement on 31 October that “investigators already have strong leads as to the perpetrator.” When reached today by RSF, the PTFoMS was unable to say anything about a working hypothesis.

If the hypothesis of a journalism-related killing is confirmed, Dinoy will be the 21st journalist to be killed in connection with their work since Rodrigo Duterte was installed as president in 2016.

The Philippines is ranked 138th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2021 World Press Freedom Index.