‘Person of interest’ traced through car registration

The police have in their custody a “person of interest” who admitted to being at Resorts World Manila the night it was attacked, a ranking police officer said on Friday.

Southern Police District Chief Supt. Tomas Apolinario said they were able to track down the person of interest  through the official receipt and car registration of the vehicle that the unidentified gunman used to go to the resort.

“We checked the identity of the attacker and then looked at his address. Of course, those who are there are persons of interest,” Apolinario said.

“He even came  with us (back) here (in Resorts World). He admitted that he was here but he said he did not know the dead (gunman),” the police official said.

“We are not sure, so he remains a person of interest and not a suspect. He’s still here. He’s under investigation,” he added.

Apolinario said the unidentified gunman was armed with an M4 assault rifle and a pistol when he barged into Resorts World Manila just after midnight on Friday.

He played down  reports that the suspect was a frequent gambler at the resort’s casino.

“I heard from the officials that this was the first time they saw the gunman so he did not frequent (Resort’s World),” Apolinario said.

He said the police had yet to establish if the gunman was a foreigner but insisted that the motive was robbery and not terrorism.

“Based on the evidence we have now, it does not point to terrorism. He tried to rob the casino,” Apolinario said.

He said the gunman did not open fire on hotel guests or employees and just fired shots into the air.

Apolinario said the police also recovered the gunman’s backpack, which had P113 million worth of gaming chips.

“He was hit in the thigh and he also hit the security guard. There were witnesses who saw the suspect but said he did not hurt them,” he added.

Apolinario said the gunman tried to start a fire to cover his escape but the policemen were quick to arrive and this prevented him from leaving.