Manila Police District (MPD) Director Arnold Thomas Ibay announced the arrest of seven minors who got involved in a ‘rumble’ on Mabini Bridge, Lacson Avenue in Sampaloc, Manila.
It was learned that the rumble took place on the second day of the traditional dawn masses or ‘Simbang Gabi’ and that the minors were seen on CCTV chasing one another in the middle of the street, unmindful of the vehicles passing by.
Ibay ordered that their parents be summoned and admonished.
In the video recording of the chaos, two shots were heard. Police said they may have come from an improvised gun, adding that a molotov bomb was also hurled and exploded on the same street.
The said melee woke up the residents who feared that the said minors may cause fire.
Kagawad Jeffrey Salcedo of Barangay 409 said their area had constantly become a ‘battleground’ of conflicts among the said rivaling groups of minors and has been putting the safety of the residents at risk.
Usually, the said groups engage in rumbles during big events in this case, the dawn masses.
“Usually, nangyayari ‘yan pag alam nila na may mga big event katulad nung unang gabi ng Simbang Gabi. Kapag maraming tao, magpapasikat sila para masabing astig o matitikas,” Salcedo said.
Owing to the rumble, some vehicles were said to have been damaged and a child got hit by a car.
Under Manila City Ordinance No. 8243 o Anti-Child Endangerment Act, negligent parents may face fines of from P2,000 to P5,000 or imprisonment of from one to six months.
