MANILA, Philippines – At least three people were murdered and another was injured in a brazen attack by a gunman on a university campus in the capital region on Sunday, officials said.
After the shooting near the gate of the Ateneo de Manila University in suburban Quezon City, the gunman, who was armed with two pistols, was apprehended. The university was placed under lockdown, and a law school graduation ceremony was canceled, according to authorities.
Officials added that Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo, who was scheduled to speak at the ceremony, was en approach to the university when the attack occurred and was told to turn back.
Mayor Joy Belmonte of Quezon City denounced the attack. “This type of act has no place in our society and must be condemned to the greatest extent possible,” she added in a statement.
Rosita Furigay, a former mayor of Lamitan town in southern Basilan province, her aide, and a university security were among those murdered in the incident, according to officials.
According to a police complaint, Furigay’s daughter, who was expected to attend the graduation ceremony, was injured and rushed to a hospital.
Investigators were trying to figure out what motivated the attack.
The shooting occurred despite heavy security and a gun ban imposed by police and other government forces in Quezon City, where newly elected President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is scheduled to deliver his first state of the nation address to a joint session of Congress at the House of Representatives on Monday.
Source: AP
