August 24, 2010 9:25 a.m. EDT
Manila, Philippines (CNN) -- Authorities botched rescue efforts during a deadly hostage situation on a tourist bus, the Philippine National Police said in a statement Tuesday.
Manila police said former police officer Rolando Mendoza, upset at having lost his job, held hostage a busload of tourists from Hong Kong on Monday and killed eight of them before being shot dead.
"We do not want to pass sweeping judgment or make early conclusions except to say that our intention to peacefully end this hostage drama was spoiled when the hostage-taker suddenly exhibited violent behavior and began shooting the hostages," Philippine National Police Chief Director General Jesus A. Verzosa said in a statement.
But a statement from the national police said officials have already noted "some observations and defects during their close monitoring of the unfolding events."
RELATED TOPICS
The statement did not provide details, but lists "poor handling of the hostage negotiation," "inadequate capability, skills, equipment and planning of the assault team," "improper crowd control," "inadequate training and competence of assault team leader" and "non-compliance to media relations procedures in hostage situations."
Police said Tuesday that the bus had a television on board, which could have allowed the gunman to watch live coverage of the standoff.
Survivors were scheduled to leave the Philippines Tuesday as officials and family members called on authorities to investigate.
"The investigation has got to find out, what was the turning point? What happened?" Philippine National Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon told CNN Tuesday.
Gordon told CNN that interviews with survivors have revealed that the situation inside the bus changed dramatically toward the end of the 10-hour standoff.
"Apparently the man went berserk. He was telling everybody he was not going to harm [them]...He said that nobody's going to get harmed. He said that he was probably going to die, but not the hostages," he said.
A woman who was on the bus told reporters her husband was killed when he tried to stop the gunman.
"My husband was very brave. He rushed out from the back of the bus to try to stop the killer," said the woman, who identified herself as Alicia Leung.
She told reporters that she pretended to be dead in order to survive.
"Why did authorities not rescue us? There were so many of us on the bus. Why did no one come to rescue us? It is so cruel," she said.
In Manila, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said he had ordered an investigation, and would wait until it is completed before deciding whether anyone should lose his or her job.
In Hong Kong, officials and residents questioned how Filipino authorities had handled the hostage situation.
"This is a serious blow to Hong Kong people. We all feel very devastated," Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang told reporters Tuesday, saying that the government would soon announce community mourning events.
Four men and four women were killed in the standoff, authorities in Hong Kong said. One passenger was critically wounded and six others were hospitalized with less serious injuries after the 10-hour standoff erupted into gunfire, Tsang said.
The Hong Kong-based tour guide was among those who died, Hong Thai Travel said in a statement. Some of the victims were insured and would be compensated, the travel agency said.
The gunman released nine of the hostages, including a mother and her three children, a man with diabetes, and two photographers. The bus driver also escaped.
The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said Tuesday that two of the released hostages were British nationals.
Manila police official Leocadio Santiago told CNN that Mendoza's family members spoke with him early in the standoff and that he appeared "very reasonable and very psychologically stable."
Mendoza was dismissed a year ago for extortion, Manila Vice Mayor Ikso Moreno said, and he wanted his motion for reconsideration to be heard.
"He felt that it was being neglected," Moreno said. "So he went on hostaging a bus full of foreign individuals. So when we talked to him this afternoon, that's what he wanted."
Moreno said that Mendoza's brother was arrested because he was "guilty of conspiring with his brother" and allegedly helped instigate the shooting.
Gordon said the brother's arrest may have pushed the gunman over the edge.
"When he saw his brother getting accosted by the policemen, he went berserk and he started firing," he said.
CNN's Sarita Harilela and journalists Constance Cheng, Maria Ressa and Arlene Samson-Espiritu contributed to this report.
No comments:
Post a Comment