Former Filipino cop hijacks bus, nine tourists released

MANILA - A disgruntled former police officer took 25 tourists hostage inside a bus in Manila on Monday, but later released nine of them, according to Philippine police.

The hijacker, armed with an assault rifle, initially released two women followed by another woman with three children and a 73-year-old man, all from Hong Kong, and later two Filipino men.

Police said 15 Hong Kong tourists and one Filipino are still inside the bus. Police confirmed that there were 25 passengers in the bus including 22 tourists from Hong Kong, three Filipinos, the bus driver, an interpreter and a photographer.

Chinese Embassy officials are now at the command post of the Manila Police District (MPD). They are hoping for a peaceful resolution of the situation and to ensure the security of the Chinese nationals, Xinhua reports.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) identified the hostage taker as former Police Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza, who was dismissed from service for extortion and forcing a chef to swallow “shabu”, a Japanese variant of pot having mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine.

Two police officers, Superintendent Orlando Yebra Jr. and Chief Inspector Romeo Salvador, are negotiating with Mendoza.

Mendoza is demanding that the authorities clear his name and that he be reinstated in service. (ANI)