Police task group names ‘hitman’ in Dayang killing
KALIBO, Aklan—Police investigators have identified the alleged gunman in the killing of veteran journalist and former Kalibo Mayor Juan “Johnny” Dayang.
The “Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) Dayang” named the suspected assassin as BB Boy Kim Wency Bayang Antonio, 39, a native of Bacoor, Cavite.
Police Brig. Gen. Jack Wanky, director of the Western Visayas police, said Antonio is suspected to be a contract killer.
“The level of planning, the use of multiple rented motorcycles, and the calculated movements before and after the killing support this conclusion,” he said even as investigators pursue leads to identify the individual or group that may have ordered the hit.
Wanky said they are also coordinating with Metro Manila law enforcement units in anticipation of possible movements by the suspect or his contacts.
Based on the investigation, Antonio arrived in Aklan as early as April 3—nearly a month before Dayang was shot dead in his home in Villa Salvacion, Kalibo, on April 29.
Antonio allegedly rented motorcycles on at least three occasions to conduct surveillance and familiarize himself with the victim’s neighborhood and routine.
Police were able to match the suspect’s identity through various means, including a repair shop’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage that showed Antonio unmasked while attending to a flat tire.
Hotel records and rental transactions further confirmed his identity.
P500,000 reward
Aklan Gov. Jose Enrique Miraflores and Kalibo Mayor Juris Sucro also announced that a P500,000 reward has been offered to anyone who can provide credible information on Antonio’s whereabouts.
“In support of the ongoing police operations, the provincial government of Aklan and the local government unit of Kalibo have jointly offered a P500,000 reward,” the Philippine National Police said in a statement on May 9.
SITG Dayang revealed that after the shooting, Antonio briefly checked into a hotel in Kalibo and then left Western Visayas via a flight from the Iloilo International Airport on May 2.
He was last seen traveling alone and carrying a light backpack.
Police also disclosed that Antonio had a prior criminal record, having been previously arrested in a drug bust operation in Pasig City in 2021.
Identification cards recovered by investigators indicated that he had worked as a private security officer.
Police are also interested in locating the driver of the motorcycle who was seen with Antonio before the shooting. The driver was believed to be Antonio’s local contact or guide.
The killing of Johnny Dayang, also a former mayor of Kalibo, has sent shockwaves across the media industry.
The 89-year-old Dayang started his career as a community journalist with the defunct Philippines News Service (now the Philippine News Agency) and various national newspapers. He was a columnist of the tabloids Tempo and Balita.
He was known for his advocacy for community journalism as longtime leader of the Publishers Association of the Philippines Inc., which he revived in the 1990s, when he was publisher of the Metro Manila tabloid Headline, Philippine Graphic and other publications in the media group of former Ambassador Antonio Cabangon-Chua.
Dayang, also former president of the Manila Overseas Press Club (MOPC) was shot thrice in the back while watching television in his home in Kalibo’s Barangay Andagaw.
According to Undersecretary Joe Torres, executive director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security, the task group expected to report to President Marcos within 30 days.
