BACOLOD City – Mayor Joselito Malabor of Isabela, Negros Occidental seeks “justice” for his daughter who got injured in a shootout between police and robbery suspects in Barangay Sum-ag.
His 15-year-old daughter Mikaela was hit by a stray bullet on the left cheek of her buttocks. She was taken to the Adventist Medical Center in this city where she is currently recuperating.
Malabor wants a “fair and independent investigation” into the incident, which he described as “overkill.”
The mayor said he will file charges against anyone who will be found responsible for the injury on his only daughter.
“I will go to as far as the Department of Justice to attain justice for my daughter,” a teary-eyed Malabor told reporters over the weekend.
The National Police Commission is looking into the incident. Its investigators went to this city last week, said Malabor. He will use the findings in filing the necessary charges, he said.
On Aug. 10 a Special Weapons and Tactics team of the Bacolod City Police Office ran after people suspected of robbing a delivery van of Japanese Tobacco, Inc. in Purok Maghili-ugyon, Barangay Taloc, Bago City, Negros Occidental.
The chase ended near the Sum-ag National High School where a trade of gunshots ensued.
Suspects Armelle Pilapil Espadon, 30, and Ryan Espadon Alib, 30, died. They were believed remnants of the Agustin gang that engaged in gun-for-hire and robbery-holdup activities.
Trisikad driver Delfin Ortiz, 70, was also struck by a stray bullet and died. Aside from Malabor’s daughter, others injured by stray bullets were Estrella Claridad, 71, and seaman Walter Dojena.
Malabor said the bullet that stuck his daughter also hit her pelvic bone. It was removed three days after the incident.
Finding difficulty walking, Mikaela has not yet returned to school as she undergoes therapy. Her mother continues to nurse her, especially when her bullet wound bleeds, said Malabor.
Malabor believes the SWAT team committed lapses. Rules of engagement provide that officers must consider the lives of civilians during operations, said the mayor.
Mikaela, a Grade 9 student of Sum-ag National High School, was walking home when the shootout ensued at around 4:30 p.m. Their house is only around 100 meters from the school, Malabor said./PN
