Police authorities are set to file charges of frustrated murder and election code violation today, March 31, against a 28-year-old SUV driver involved in a road rage shooting incident in Antipolo City that has gone viral on social media.
According to Police Brig. Gen. Paul Kenneth Lucas of PRO 4A, the SUV driver allegedly fired at least eight shots at two motorcycle riders during a confrontation in Barangay San Jose. Eight spent shells were recovered at the scene.
Lucas said the charges include violating the Omnibus Election Code, as the driver had no Comelec exemption to carry a firearm despite owning a licensed gun. “We saw that he was carrying a firearm and he fired not once but several times. We will be filing the case today (Monday),” he stated.
The suspect, a businessman from Quezon City, is currently held at the Antipolo City Police Station.
The incident occurred around 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 30, in Sitio Calumpang, also referred to in the viral video as Boso-Boso. Netizens are divided over whether the act was self-defense, with footage showing the SUV driver being attacked by at least two riders before drawing his weapon.
Lucas noted that it would be up to the suspect’s lawyer to argue self-defense in court.
Antipolo Police Chief Lt. Col. Ryan Manongdo revealed that the driver already had his gun in a sling bag during an earlier verbal altercation. “I don’t know if this would be positive or negative because he could have drawn the gun earlier,” he said.
Preliminary investigation suggests the SUV driver had been driving recklessly after leaving a private resort, leading to a chase by a group of riders who came from a nearby tourist spot. The confrontation reportedly escalated when the driver returned to the resort area to retrieve a family member’s missing item.
Two of the riders who physically attacked the SUV driver were identified as father and son. One of them is now in critical condition. The suspect’s girlfriend was also hit in the leg during the exchange.
“This is really a case of road rage, it was not planned. It’s a road rage, a burst of emotion with a wrong reaction,” Manongdo added.
Meanwhile, LTO Chief Vigor Mendoza II has launched a separate investigation and issued a 90-day suspension of the licenses of both the SUV driver and one of the riders. Their vehicles were also flagged under alarm status.
Mendoza emphasized the importance of uncovering what exactly triggered the altercation, saying the probe’s outcome could lead to possible license revocations.
