UP campus drainage yields pistols, ammo

Two loaded pistols and several rounds of ammunition were found in a drainage canal on the University of the Philippines campus in Diliman, Quezon City, Thursday morning.

Around 10:30 a.m., workers hired by the UP Maintenance Office were unclogging the drainage at the corner of E. Delos Santos and T. Kalaw Streets when they found two corroded handguns—a .45-caliber, 1911 model pistol and a .45-caliber Glock—and five magazines in the manhole.

Quezon City Police District (QCPD) director Chief Supt. Edgardo Tinio on Friday said he had ordered an investigation as it was believed that the firearms were used for a crime before the perpetrators threw them into drainage to eliminate any evidence.

Supt. Richard Fiesta, commander of the QCPD-Anonas station which has jurisdiction over the campus, noted that rust had already rendered the serial number on 1911 pistol illegible, while the markings on the Glock remain clear.

The pistols were turned over to the QCPD Crime Laboratory for examination.

Tinio said the alarming find on the state university campus may require a review and strengthening of present security arrangements between the QCPD and UP Diliman Police.