US sailor stabbed at Manila port

A US sailor was stabbed by unknown persons shortly after midnight yesterday while on sentry duty at the Manila South Harbor, a military spokesman said.

Acting Armed Forces spokesman Lt. Gen. Narciso Abaya identified the victim DT3 (Dental Technician 3rd Class) David Edward Spencer, who was stabbed in the chin and the neck for still unknown reasons while standing guard at Pier 13 at 12:25 a.m.

He said Spencer was rushed to the Manila Doctors Hospital in T.M. Kalaw street where he was pronounced to be in stable condition at around 6 a.m.

Spencer and a certain SN1 Crowes were guarding the US landing ship USS Fort McHenry, which participated in the just-concluded joint Balikatan 02-2 large-scale military exercises in Central and Northern Luzon when the incident occurred.

"There is an ongoing investigation by elements of the Philippine Navy and elements of the US Armed Forces," Abaya said. "I don’t think there would be any robbery motive here,"

He could not say whether Spencer’s firearm was taken or not, adding Crowes and other witnesses are not being interviewed by the police.

"There are supposed to be four eyewitnesses being investigated," Abaya said.– Paolo Romero