Inmate slain, 2 hurt in Marikina jail riot

MANILA, Philippines - An inmate was killed while two others were wounded when a jail guard shot them with rubber bullets to quell a riot in the Marikina City Jail Sunday.

Inmate Roel Diaz sustained four puncture wounds in the body. He died while being rushed to the Amang Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center (ARMMC). Jayson Malicdin and John Cariño also sustained gunshot wounds and are being treated in the same hospital.

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) replaced jail warden Senior Inspector Nicanor Abraham with Senior Inspector Gregorio Acacio as a result of the riot.

Chief Superintendent Miguel Laurel, director of the Eastern Police District (EPD), said the riot started at the male dormitory of the jail, which is at the fifth floor of the Marikina City Justice Hall, at about 4:40 p.m. Sunday. The facility houses at least 456 inmates.

Initial investigation results showed that an inmate, Michael Amaba, vehemently protested the body frisking done by Jail Officer 1 Catherine Mahinay on his wife during her visit.

The furious Amaba shouted invectives at the jail guards and challenged JO3 Zaldy Canale, the first shift duty desk officer, to a fistfight. Canale ignored Amaba.

Moments later, the inmates started pushing the jail’s steel wall and throwing rocks, which came from the jail comfort room under construction, at the jail personnel. Laurel said Canale tried to stop the riot by using a shotgun loaded with rubber bullets, hitting Diaz, Malicdim and Cariño.

“It was unfortunate that someone died during the jail riot while the BJMP does its job to maintain peace and order inside their facility. The police officer on the other hand did not expect the inmate to die as he was only using a shotgun with rubber bullets,” said Marikina Mayor Del de Guzman.

The BJMP immediately asked the help of the local police Special Reaction Unit, Bureau of Fire Protection and the Marikina Rescue 161, whose members quelled the jail riot at about 6 p.m.

“It was good that the BJMP and (police) immediately responded to the riot as we might not know what kind of problems we may face once the inmates escape our city jail,” De Guzman said.

According to the BJMP, they are beefing up their security measures in the facility as they have encountered two cases of visitors bringing illegal drugs into the city jail.

Laurel and BJMP officials are still determining whether other jail guards fired their issued firearms at the rioting inmates.