Resorts World incident not terror-related — Palace

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella. (PCOO photo)

MANILA, June 2 — Malacañang on Friday stressed that the incident at the Resorts World Manila in Pasay City is not terror-related but a criminal act carried out by an emotionally disturbed individual.

At a Palace briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that initial findings of police investigation on the incident have shown that “there are no indications of terrorist activity.”

“All indications point to a criminal act by an apparently emotionally disturbed individual. Although the perpetrator gave warning shots, there apparently was no indication that he wanted to harm or shoot anyone,” he pointed out.

The attack by a lone heavily-armed suspect at the casino complex left 36 dead and at least 54 wounded.

“All the deceased died due to suffocation at the second floor gaming area which had been set on fire by the perpetrator who eventually committed suicide in the fifth floor of the Maxims Hotel where he set himself on fire and then shot himself,“ Abella said.

“The only other individual who sustained a gunshot wound was the security guard who accidentally shot himself,” he said.

In the meantime, Malacañang expressed its deep condolences to the kin of the victims of the attack.

“The Palace wishes to express its deep condolences to the families and friends of the victims of the Resorts World Manila’s latest incident,” Abella said.

He said that the incident serves as a reminder that civilized society has no place for this kind of violence.

“Thus, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has put the campaign against criminality as a centerpiece program of his administration. The safety of citizens and the security of communities are our primordial concerns, and we hope to seek everybody’s cooperation to achieve a peaceful and fear-free environment,” Abella said.