Man jumps from 4th floor of QC justice hall

MANILA, Philippines - A 30-year-old man was hurt after he jumped from the fourth floor of the Quezon City Hall of Justice yesterday while waiting to be charged in a malicious mischief case.

Jonathan Castor of Malabon City was rushed to the Quirino Memorial Medical Center due to head injuries. He remains confined at the hospital.

Castor was with Police Officer 3 Jonathan Bastarde and Redemzon de Guzman, the complainant in the case to be filed against Castor, at around 8 a.m. when the incident happened. Bastarde was then transacting at the window of the prosecutor’s office records division while Castor and De Guzman were sitting on a bench near the railings.

Castor suddenly stood up and jumped. De Guzman, a traffic aide, said he tried to stop Castor but only managed to grab his shirt. Castor, who was still handcuffed when he jumped, landed on the ground floor of the building.

According to the complainant, he did not notice anything unusual with Castor except that he was quiet when they arrived at the justice hall.

Castor was arrested last Thursday for allegedly throwing a stone at the windshield of a Metropolitan Manila Development Authority vehicle that De Guzman parked along Agham Road. The MMDA traffic aide chased the fleeing Castor and turned him over to the police.