Teen hurt in Tondo drive-by shooting

MANILA, Philippines - A 15-year-old male student was seriously injured when two men riding tandem on a motorcycle shot at a group of tricycle drivers in Tondo, Manila Friday night.

Relen Palma, a second year high school student, sustained a gunshot wound in the body and is under observation at the Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center, according to Manila Police District (MPD) spokesman Chief Inspector Erwin Margarejo.

Police said that at around 11:45 p.m., two men on a black Honda Dazz motorcycle repeatedly shot at a group of tricycle drivers at the corner of Bambang and Fermin streets. Palma happened to be “in the wrong place at the right time,” Margarejo said.

Palma’s mother, Evelyn, rushed him to the hospital.

No one was able to note the license plates of the motorcycle. The two attackers sped away after the shooting.

Margarejo said MPD officer-in-charge Chief Superintendent Roberto Rongavilla has ordered the setup of more checkpoints in crime-prone areas in the city, especially at night, with instructions to be on alert for motorcyclists riding tandem.