2 Grade 8 students stabbed dead in Las Piñas

MANILA, Philippines — In yet another episode of violence in schools, two Grade 8 students of Captain Albert Aguilar National High School in Las Piñas City were stabbed dead by three of their schoolmates Friday night.

Col. Sandro Jay Tafalla, Las Piñas police chief, told The STAR that the two were cousins who had a misunderstanding with three of their schoolmates “about a light switch.”

Tafalla said the victims, both 15, were killed along Balikan Street after they were dismissed from class.

“At four in the afternoon, these students argued about a light switch inside the classroom,” Tafalla said in Filipino in a phone interview.

“When the victims left (school) at 7 p.m., they were chased 100 meters away from the school and ultimately stabbed,” he added.

Initial investigation showed that a Grade 7 student, a 14-year-old, and a 16-year-old Grade 10 student acted as backups to the attacker – a 15-year-old who is enrolled in Grade 9.

The attacker stabbed one of the victims in the right chest and the other in the left side of the neck.

The first victim was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, while the other died after two hours of emergency treatment.

Tafalla said the police would meet with school authorities next week to strengthen security measures on campus.

Earlier, a Grade 8 student in Parañaque City also died from stab wounds after refusing to lend her makeup kit.

A month earlier, two high school students survived a brawl in Pasig.

The rising number of student-related crimes prompted Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian to conduct a hearing on Tuesday, during which he described the Philippines as “the bullying capital of the world,” citing findings of the Program for International Student Assessment.

The Department of Education reported that between November 2022 and April 2025, DepEd received 658 complaints for bullying.

DepEd also disclosed that out of 45,000 public schools in the country, only 966 have fully functioning anti-bullying committees.

In a press statement issued on Friday, DepEd said it is committed to curb bullying in schools.

“Every case is taken seriously, with swift action and sustained efforts to ensure safe and supportive learning spaces for all,” the statement read. — Elizabeth Marcelo