Negros mayor eyes raps vs SWAT members

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines —  A mayor in Negros Occidental mulls filing criminal charges against members of the police Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) for the injury of his daughter, who was hit by a stray bullet during a recent shootout with robbery suspects.

Isabela Mayor Joselito Malabor said he will press charges against Bacolod policemen before the Department of Justice if the SWAT members are not penalized for their negligence.

Malabor’s daughter, a minor, was hit by a stray bullet in her left buttock when policemen exchanged gunfire with two robbery suspects in Taloc, Bago City on Aug. 10.

The two suspects were killed.

Malabor disclosed that his daughter is having difficulty walking and uses a cane, temporarily disabled from going to school.

Senior Superintendent Francisco Ebreo, Bacolod police acting director, refused to comment on Malabor’s statement.

But Ebreo said the case is now being investigated by the Regional Internal Affairs Service.