9 killed on hijacked tourist bus in the Philippines
Written by Robbie Fish on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010
Omar Mercado of the World Correspondents reported that a former Manila police officer took twenty five hostages in a tourist bus in the Philippines on Monday morning. The hostage situation ended after a ten-hour standoff with at least two hostages reported killed and the hostage taker shot dead.
But that was the first report. Jim Gomez of the Associated Press via Yahoo News reported that 9 were killed on hijacked tourist bus in the Philippines.
Former police officer Rolando Mendoza hijacked a tourist bus on Monday morning demanding that he be reinstated to his law enforcement duty.
Mendoza was dismissed a year ago on charges of extortion and harassment in a drug-related case. On top of his demand for reinstatement, he also wanted to clear his name in relation to the cases he was involved with.
Mendoza boarded the bus wearing a police uniform and carrying an assault rifle. The bus was taken to a prominent landmark in Manila called the Quirino Grandstand, just a few hundred feet from the Manila Hotel. Over the last ten hours, he has released some of the hostages that included a mother, three children, an elderly man with diabetes and photographers.
A police assault team breached the bus that led to the bloody ending to the hostage drama. Mendoza was reportedly shot dead after leaving at least two hostages dead.