14-year-old gunman in Tacloban shooting fired at least 33 shots – PNP

MANILA, Philippines — One of the two teenage gunmen in the Tacloban City school shooting was able to fire at least 33 gunshots and even reload his pistol, resulting in the killing of three of their schoolmates, and wounding of at least 20 others.

In a briefing in Malacañang on Tuesday, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Col. Allen Rae Co said that crime scene investigators were able to recover 34 cartridges.

“At least 34 bullets were fired: 21 fired cartridge cases, and 13 live cartridges, as well as the bullets themselves,” Co said.

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According to Co, the first shooter, 15-year-old “alias Rod,” was only able to fire once before he was restrained by law enforcement officers at 9:30 a.m. on Monday—10 minutes after the first round of shots were fired at San Jose National High School.

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Recovered from him was a .38 cal. Armscor revolver, which was still loaded with five live bullets out of its six-chamber cylinder.

His firearm was registered to a Cebu City-based security agency where his grandfather used to work.

“When we first placed him into custody, we found a .38 caliber revolver with him that still had five unfired rounds. It holds six rounds, and he was only able to fire one shot,” Co said.

READ: School shooting kills 3 students in Tacloban

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However, the younger gunman—14-year-old “alias Nash” “was able to change magazines” of his firearm, according to the PNP official.

Co said the 14-year-old “possibly” changed magazines more than once, but investigators were only able to recover two—one empty magazine recovered inside the school premises, and another one, which was still attached to the firearm that he discarded when he was captured by civilian responders at 11:15 a.m., or almost 2 hours after the shooting took place.

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Recovered from the younger gunman was a 9-mm Glock 17 pistol, whose standard magazine can hold 17 rounds. The firearm was registered to the shooter’s aunt, a lawyer-police officer assigned to the Eastern Visayas police regional office.

According to Co, the quick response of law enforcers—with police arriving two minutes after the start of the shooting—helped prevent more deaths and injuries among the school community.

“We were afraid that the gunmen had extra magazines that we have not yet recovered, and they might have reloaded them into their firearms had they not been arrested,” he said.

Co said police are currently investigating how the two students were able to stash their firearms inside the school.

“It appears that there may have been some shortcomings in our current security protocols, so we will look into ways to further strengthen security in our schools,” he added.

READ: Tacloban shooting: Slain student who shielded peers hailed a hero

To prevent similar school shootings from happening in the future, the PNP ordered all local police units across the country, in coordination with local Department of Education (DepEd) offices, to conduct a comprehensive review of existing school safety measures.

It will cover current school security protocols and access control systems, including entry procedures designed to prevent unauthorized individuals and prohibited items from entering school premises.

“We are recommending that schools with large campuses and multiple ingress and egress points limit these to only one or two entry and exit points so that we can better monitor those entering the premises,” Co said.

The PNP will also assess the implementation of anti-bullying policies to ensure these are not merely existing on paper but are actively enforced within schools.”

Co, however, clarified that claims that the shooting was connected to bullying “remain unconfirmed and came only from the suspects’ own statements.

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Authorities are also reviewing existing coordination mechanisms between schools and local police units, emergency response plans, and readiness to handle critical incidents, as well as student behavioral monitoring systems and the availability of guidance counselors and mental health support services. —WITH A REPORT FROM ANDRE ESGUERRA, INTERN