Guard takes daughter "hostage"

CEBU, Philippines - Criminal charges are set to be filed today against the security guard who held hostage his 15-year-old daughter for about 16 hours at the second floor of their house in Sitio Kinamagan, Barangay Poblacion, Borbon.

On Wednesday afternoon, Borbon police were informed of a trouble alarm but upon responding to the area, they found out that Pedro Longakit Jr., 38, was armed with a .38 revolver and an improvised gun locally known as “de bomba” and held hostage his 15-year-old daughter by tying her left arm to his right arm with a straw.

Pedro, a guard under GDS Security and Detective Agency and assigned at the Atlantic Hardware in Barangay Jagobiao, Mandaue City, abandoned his post for three days before he started acting unusual.

The suspect’s daughter admitted that prior to the incident, she was about to leave for Cebu City with her 18-year-old brother on Wednesday afternoon when their father arrived.

She said he was already armed and was apparently under the influence of liquor.

This prompted her grandfather and other siblings aged 14, and twin sisters aged 9 to hurriedly leave the house. They were supposed to go to cemetery that time.

Her father then got a straw and started tying her then took her to the second floor of their house where he fired his revolver once.

The victim’s mother, Jennifer, 37, was working at that time in Cebu City when she received a phone call from one of her sons informing her of what happened.

Jennifer said she hurried home and sought police assistance.

Chief Insp. Emiliano Igot, Borbon police chief, said that what was supposed to be a trouble alarm turned out as a hostage-drama after his men informed him that a minor was held inside the house. He then directed his men to stay around.

Sr. Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, Cebu Provincial Police Office director, immediately deployed eight members of the Special Reaction Unit to help the Borbon police in negotiating with the suspect but he directed them to make the negotiations early morning yesterday.

Municipal councilman Roy Melgo and Igot, who made the negotiations, calmly informed Pedro that his wife was around and talked to him through the cellular phone.

Pedro claimed that all he wanted was to be with his family again after his relationship with his wife turned sour for more than a year.

He added that domestic problems and the work that he abandoned last Monday led him to nearly turn shoot himself with his service firearm.

“Didto ra mi naglam-bing-lambing sa taas, kay suod mani nako bataa gud. Wala koy tuyo nga dama-yon nako siya (daughter) ako ra gibaatan iyang bukton ug ang tumoy gibaat pud nako sa akong tuong bukton. Nakahukom na lang ta ko nga magpusil kay wa nay lami kay nag-ugom ko og kaguol,” Pedro said, refusing to divulge the details of the real reason for their conflict.

Jennifer admitted that jealousy became the root of their problem after Pedro was being teased by their neighbor that she was having an affair with another man.

“Gisukod ra man na nako siya kay dugay na man mi nga ingon ani pero wala ko mag-expect nga maabot sa ingon ani,” she said.

Pedro apologized to the public, to his family and neighbors for what he did. He also surrendered his revolver with seven ammunitions to the police.

Melgo said that the family shall undergo counseling to help them recover what they have lost emotionally, mentally and spiritually.

Retired Chief Insp. Raul Rendon, security consultant of the GDS Security and Detective Agency, said that Pedro does not have any derogatory record. He claimed that Pedro could go back to his post after he will undergo a neuro-psychiatric test to determine his mental capability.

 Police will be filing charges for illegal possession of firearms today at the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office and are still evaluating the filing of charges for child abuse and illegal detention against Longakit. (FREEMAN)