Disgruntled former security guard ‘takes dozens hostage’ in Manila

By Associated Press reporters
Updated ·1 min read

A recently dismissed security guard started firing a gun and took dozens of people hostage in Manila, authorities said.

Mayor Francis Zamora of the Philippine capital’s San Juan area said the gunman shot one person at the V-Mall.

The victim was in stable condition at a nearby hospital.

Mr Zamora said a negotiator was trying to talk to the gunman – a disgruntled former security guard at the shopping complex – inside an administration office.

A group of armed police arrive at the Greenhills Shopping Centre in Manila
A group of armed police arrive at the Greenhills Shopping Centre in Manila (Aaron Favila/AP)

“He felt bad because he was removed as a guard,” he told reporters, adding that the man tried but failed to convince fellow guards to join him.

The man demanded to talk to fellow guards and the media, Mr Zamora said, but it was not clear if officials would agree to those conditions.

More than a dozen SWAT commandos were earlier seen entering the shopping centre with their assault rifles ready.