Reginald “Rene” Hodgens was shot in the head in front of his residence by a know ‘murder-for-hire’ gunman. The 70-year-old Australian surfer had no wife or children and lived alone in Sinait in the Philippine province of Ilocos Sur. Sinait is a town of about 25,000 people about 450 kilometers north of The Philippines’ capital of Manila.
According to a friend of the deceased Mr. Hodgens was in the process of vacating the house he rented due to a dispute with his landlord. Apparently, the dispute got physical because thefriend said that the victim ended up with a black eye at one point.
Prior to his murder he apparently was in a heated dispute with his former landlord. He filed a complaint against him and even left the landlord’s domicile with a black eye at one point. The landlord, however, denies any wrong doing.
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News reports indicate that the Australian was actually well-liked and the Philippine National Police (PNP) have reported receiving numerous condolences by locals and foreigners alike.
“Poor Sir Rene. We will miss u,” was the message left by Claudette Ann Tindoc Vite.
This is just another example of the importance of keeping a low profile in The Philippines. This man wasn’t the only foreigner to meet his demise in a dispute with a local. Whether or not Rene was right or wrong in the dispute it wasn’t worth his life. As difficult as it can be hopefully his death illustrates why we foreigners must learn to suck it up and move on if we feel slighted by a local.
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