AN Army corporal may face criminal charges, dishonorable separation from the service and forfeiture of all his privileges and retirement benefits if he is found guilty of indiscriminately firing his weapon during the New Year.
“The police are now investigating the incident,” said Lt. Col. Ray Tiongson, Army spokesman. “Cpl. Richard John Quijano is an active member of the Philippine Army while Staff Sgt. Jamael Mindalano retired from the military service [on] Dec. 31, 2016.”
Tiongson said that while the Army has no jurisdiction over retired personnel, Quijano could also be liable for the illegal discharge of firearms under Army regulations and other infractions of the Articles of War.
“As we have established in the past, the Philippine Army does not condone nor tolerate misdemeanors committed by its personnel,” he said.
Earlier, Taguig City police arrested Mindalano and Quijano, who is assigned to the Light Reaction company, Special Operations Command, for indiscriminate firing, alarm and scandal, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, physical injury, direct assault, resisting arrest and serious disobedience.
They seized two .45 caliber pistols, a 9mm pistol, a .38 caliber revolver and assorted ammunition from the two suspects.
Their illegal activities were reported to the authorities by their victim, Jolly Moreno, who was hit in his right mid-section by a ricocheting bullet during the New Year’s festivities.
Police arrested 26 people for illegal discharging their firearms over the holiday season, Philippine National Police chief Ronald dela Rosa said Tuesday.
Dela Rosa also attributed the decline in firecracker-related injuries to President Rodrigo Duterte’s executive order banning the use of firecrackers by private individuals.