At least eleven persons including a city mayor were killed on Sunday in a shoot-out with the police during a drug raid in southern Philippines.

Chief Superitendent of Police, Timoteo Pacleb said they also arrested the Vice Mayor of Ozamiz City which is located about 780km south of Mainla, the country’s capital.

The police had before the dawn raid, served search warrants against the properties of the Mayor, Reynaldo Parojinog Senior, his daughter, Nova and three other family members on allegations that they were engaged in illicit drug trade.

“The police personnel were met with volleys of gunfire from their security details, prompting the police to retaliate,” Pacleb said.

Apart from Parojinog, his wife, a provincial board member who was also a relative and four security aides of the family were among those killed during the shoot-out while the identities of the other slain victims were still to be verified.

The police also confiscated high-powered firearms and an undetermined amount of methamphetamine hydrochloride from at least four houses belonging to the Parojinog family.