Man seeks justice for wife shot 28 times in Philippines

Mia Mascarinas-Green with her 10-year-old daughter and twins aged 23 months

A man whose lawyer wife was gunned down on a busy Philippines street is seeking to meet with top-ranking officials to try to bring her killers to justice.

Mia Mascarinas-Green was killed in her car in Tagbilaran City with their three children in the back seat.

Stuart Green, from Hertfordshire, was living with his family in Bohol province when his wife was shot.

After shooting Mia the killers turned the gun on the children but the gun jammed, Mr Green said.

Twenty eight bullets

"If not for the miracle of the gun jamming it was highly likely that I would have returned to four coffins," Mr Green added.

Mrs Mascarinas-Green was forced to stop at about 16:45 on 16 February when a motorbike swerved in front of the car she was driving.

Witnesses said two men walked over to the car and put a bullet in the engine, before firing a total of 28 bullets at Mrs Mascarinas-Green - nine of which lodged into the back of her neck, killing her.

Mia Mascarinas-Green was a prominent environmental and human rights lawyer, whose funeral was attended by thousands of people.

Mr Green, a marine biologist, met his wife in 1990 at a conference in the Philippines and the country was their home, but since his wife's murder the family has returned to Hertfordshire.

'Life-shattering'

He believes the motive for his wife's death is due to a dispute involving a minor case she had undertaken involving the ownership of a holiday hotel.

"Mia was just doing her job. This was not an environmental case or children or women's work. This was just a small case," Mr Green said.

"I feel a burning need to ensure that these people are never able to put any other human being, or family through this heart wrenching and life-shattering experience ever again," he added.

Mr Green is planning to meet with Bohol's governor, the head of the national police and other officials for an update on the investigation.

Friends of the couple have set up an education foundation for the children.