Authorities cordon off the scene of the crime at a high school in Banga town, South Cotabato following the shooting which left six dead and scores injured. The shooter – who was later identified as a student in the school – also died after shooting himself.
Photograph courtesy of STR /AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents took a teenager linked to a recent school shooting in South Cotabato (SoCot) into protective custody in Cebu, NBI director Melvin Matibag confirmed after a Senate budget hearing.
Matibag clarified that the operation involving the minor was a protective intervention rather than a traditional arrest.
“That is not an arrest,” Matibag said. “That is a rescue that is in coordination with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).”
Authorities located the minor in Cebu during the execution of a search warrant issued by a Cebu City court.
Matibag said investigators directly linked the teenager to the South Cotabato incident, adding that the youth’s parents assisted in the operation.
Following the initial intervention, Matibag disclosed plans to take up to 10 additional minors, aged 12 to 16, into protective custody.
Investigators monitor a single network of minors spanning different schools and locations, including South Cotabato, Cebu and Tacloban.
Intelligence indicates the group planned to carry out additional school attacks between December and February.
The intervention follows an 18 September school shooting in Banga, South Cotabato, that left three students dead, including the gunman.
“This is clearly a national security issue. This is a clear and present danger issue,” Matibag said. “What hurts here is that both the victims and the perpetrators are minors.”
