Alleged arson reported at journalist’s home in Laguna

MANILA, Philippines — An alleged arson incident was reported at the home of Bilyonaryo News Channel digital chief and former Philippine Daily Inquirer journalist Marlon Ramos in Laguna early Thursday morning.

The fire broke out at the kitchen of Ramos’ home in a subdivision in Santa Rosa City around 2:43 a.m., causing an explosion, according to a police report.

It noted that Ramos had smelled a “combustible chemical” during the blaze.

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During the incident, the subdivision’s security guard apprehended an individual identified as a 21-year-old classmate of Ramos’ child, the journalist said in an interview on DWAR later on Thursday morning.

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“He was caught with a container of gasoline,” Ramos explained. “He admitted to what he did and said he was being bullied by my child.”

“What’s scary here is that this appears to be what our investigators call a copycat crime after what happened in Tacloban,” he added.

He was referring to the June 22 fatal shooting incident at the San Jose National High School in Tacloban City, where two minor suspects opened fire, killing three students and injuring 20 others.

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According to Ramos, the suspect, who frequently visited their home, managed to pass through the village security after claiming he was there to sleep over.

“It leaves a bad taste since I treated him like a son. Whenever he visits, we fed him, joked around with him, watched television with him, watched movies with him,” Ramos said.

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“My child then said they started avoiding him. My youngest child told me their group of friends started avoiding him when they started getting suspicions that his attitude and behavior had changed. They hid from him,” he added.

Neither the police report nor Ramos specified the arrested suspect’s current disposition and whether he would be facing a case.

Ramos noted that he and his family were all safe after evacuating the home during the fire.

The police report detailed that around P156,000 worth of damage was caused by the blaze.

The Bureau of Fire Protection is currently conducting an investigation into the incident, Police Regional Office Calabarzon public information chief Lt. Col. Milany Martires told the Inquirer in a text message. /das

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