Lawyer shot by town mayor’s drunk security aide dies in hospital

MANILA, Philippines – Authorities said the lawyer shot by a drunk security aide of the Mayor of Guiguinto town in Bulacan Tuesday afternoon has died while undergoing medical treatment at a hospital.

Head of Bulacan provincial police Senior Superintendent Fernando Mendez said lawyer Edwin Cerezo succumbed to the wounds he sustained during the shooting spree of Mayor Isagani Pascual’s security aide Danny Bana.

Citing a report from region 3 police, Philippine National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. identified the other three persons hurt in the incident as Eddie Brigino, another security aide of the mayor; Police Officer 1 Michael Mendoza from Guiguinto police; and Julius Aquilus, who was visiting the mayor that day. They were all rushed to a nearby hospital, said Mendez.

Bana, toting a 9mm caliber pistol, had gone into the mayor’s office and started shooting people at around 3:20 p.m. Mendez disclosed that Bana had been drunk when he barged into the office.

He added that Bana was killed by another of Pascual’s bodyguards.

Mendez stated that Pascual had been in the office when the incident happened but was not one of the injured. He said that the reason behind Bana’s behavior was not yet clear to the investigators, although they were told that the security aide was told off by Pascual earlier that day.