A 1-year-old girl died after being hit by a stray bullet in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental.
The suspect, identified as Nomar Ayan Bero, 46, surrendered to the police. He was armed with a .38 caliber handgun.
According to the Philippine National Police, the child was playing inside their house with relatives on Sunday, December 5, when they heard two gunshots.
They only saw the victim lying on the floor with blood on her head.
The child was immediately taken to a hospital in Manapla town and later transferred to Bacolod City but died on Monday, December 6.
The PNP promised that they would bring justice to the child’s death.
“Bero will be charged accordingly, based on the prosecutor’s appreciation of the evidence presented by police investigators,” said PNP chief Gen. Dionardo Carlos.
Carlos also ordered the Western Visayas police to monitor the case and look at the suspect’s documents in carrying the gun.
“As we dig deeper into this, we would like to check on the documents of the suspects for carrying such firearm. Our investigators are already preparing all material and testimonial evidence to support the case,” Carlos said.
Stray bullet kills 1-year-old girl in Negros Occidental
A stray bullet is a bullet that hits an unintended target after being fired from a gun. Such a shooting accident may occur due to missing the mark when hunting or sport-shooting, as a result of accidental/negligent discharges, or during crossfire or celebratory gunfire.
In the Philippines, incidents involving stray bullets rose during the New Year revelry. The Philippine National Police has reportedly recorded 52 stray bullet incidents during the monitoring between December 16, 2015, and January 5, 2016, of which 42 victims were injured.
Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police (PNP) has assured that they will strictly enforce the ban on illegal fireworks this coming Christmas and New Year.
In 2017, Duterte implemented Executive Order 28, which limits fireworks on “community fireworks displays” to prevent injuries and deaths, except for certain subjects in laws, rules, and regulations.
Each police station must liaise with their respective local governments to identify and observe designated firecracker zones.
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