Negros Oriental lawmaker’s son dies in accidental shooting

DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Philippines — The eldest son of Negros Oriental Rep. George Arnaiz died over the weekend when he accidentally shot himself, police said Monday.

George Augusto “Googie” Arnaiz, 38, died from a gunshot wound in the right temple, with the bullet exiting from the left side of the head. The accidental shooting happened inside the Arnaiz ancestral home in Barangay (village) Datagon, Pamplona town, Negros Oriental, Saturday morning,

Senior Insp. Renato Bureros, Pamplona police chief, told radio dyGB FM here that the younger Arnaiz was found dead by the congressman, who was sleeping on another bed in the same room.

The gun was a Norinco .45 caliber pistol, which the younger Arnaiz got from his father’s bedside table.

Bureros said the gun was a licensed firearm registered in the congressman’s name.

“The congressman woke up to the explosion at 5:45 a.m. and his bodyguard rushed into the room,” Bureros said.

A barangay councilor of Datagon, a certain Kagawad Alba, informed the police about the accidental shooting, said Bureros.

Bureros said they believed that the younger Arnaiz must have been playing with his father’s gun when it exploded.

The wake of Arnaiz is being held at the family home in Datagon, Pamplona.