Blast rocks Greenhills building

MANILA, Philippines - A hand grenade exploded in a building along Ortigas Avenue in Greenhills, San Juan City before dawn yesterday.

No one was reported hurt in the blast that damaged the glass door of LK Holdings, a realty firm that has its office at the basement of the Bonaventure Plaza building, according to Eastern Police District director Chief Superintendent Miguel Laurel. The firm is the only occupant of the building’s basement.

Laurel said that based from the fragments collected at the scene, the grenade that exploded was of the MK2 type.

He said investigators are looking at the angle that the explosion is connected with the arrest in Bulacan early this month of three employees of the company who were allegedly involved in the malversation of some P20 million in company funds.

“The company had earlier filed a case for qualified theft against the three and even offered a reward for their arrests. We think that case has something to do with the explosion,” Laurel said.

According to Laurel, it appears that the grenade explosion was only meant to scare as it happened at around 1:15 a.m. The building has no closed-circuit television cameras, police said.

As the police are investigating the blast, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman Col. Arnulfo Burgos Jr. said they have not monitored any credible or major threat within the metropolis.

He assured the public that the military is ever vigilant and proactive, and AFP units will continue their “security operations and intelligence gathering and monitoring.” – With Jaime Laude