A 13-year-old boy was shot outside his home in Pasay City in Metro Manila yesterday, the latest in a string of drug-related teen killings over the past month.
Jayross Brondial was sitting on a chair in front of their house at around 2pm. The police report says that he was “shot repeatedly” by the driver of a red motorcycle who was wearing a full-face helmet and remains unidentified.
GMA News reported that police investigators found six .45 caliber slugs and three casings from the crime scene. Also in the area during the incident was Jayross’ infant cousin who he was able to protect before getting shot, as seen in the village’s CCTV footage.
According to GMA News, Jayross’ neighbors think the teenager was mistaken for someone with links to the drug trade who was wearing blue shorts and hat that are similar to what the victim was wearing.
“When I exited the door, someone suddenly fired a gun so I ran,” Jayross’ mother, Rosanna Brondial told GMA News. “But I did not know that it was my son that was going to be shot because I saw that the gun was aimed at the neighbor.”
According to a study released last month by the Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC), 20 teenagers between the ages of 15 and 17 have been killed by masked vigilantes, police, or stray bullets since the crackdown began last year. Six children under the age of 13 and two pregnant women have also been killed.
According to human rights organizations, over 13,000 people have been killed in President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs. Although this is a figure that the government disputes.
The police say they still don’t know the gunman’s motives.
