News Update Police hunt killer of foreigners in Philippines

ANGELES CITY, Philippines (AFP) - – Police in the Philippines were hunting a man on Monday suspected of murdering three foreigners in separate attacks inside gated communities this month, authorities said.

The victims -- an American, a Canadian and a Briton -- were among nine people believed to have been killed by 28-year-old Mark Dizon in the northern city of Angeles, according to police.

"We are conducting a massive manhunt for his arrest," Angeles police chief Danilo Bautista told AFP.

Dizon, a computer technician and reflexologist, is suspected of killing American Albert Mitchell, 70, his 53-year-old Filipina wife, Janet, and their three domestic helpers inside their Angeles home last week, Bautista said.

He is believed to have murdered Briton James Porter, 51, and his 22-year-old Filipina girlfriend in their home a few days earlier, according to Bautista.

Dizon is also suspected of murdering Canadian Geoffrey Bennun, 60, and his 20-year-old Filipina girlfriend in similar circumstances on July 12.

All the men were retirees and lived in separate gated communities that are popular with foreigners in Angeles, according to Bautista.

Dizon would befriend his victims and gain their trust before entering their communities on the premise that he was going to repair their computers, Angeles mayor Edgardo Pamintuan told reporters at the weekend.

He is then alleged to have killed his victims with a 9mm pistol and stolen electronic gadgets from their homes, which he then pawned.

A local pawn-shop owner, who saw pictures of the suspect on television, handed over to police a laptop, cameras, lenses and mobile phones all recently pawned by Dizon.

Angeles is well-known for its red-light nightlife, which began when the city serviced a US airbase. The base closed in 1991 but the city retains a large population of foreign residents.

Mitchell, the murdered American, was a retired US air force serviceman, according to Bautista.