The violent rampage of a lone gunman in a casino in Pasay City was neither a terrorist attack nor an incident connected with the armed conflict in Marawi City, Malacañang declared yesterday.
Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella tried to reassure the public about the country’s security situation, saying the criminal act at the Resorts World Manila was perpetrated by “an apparently emotionally disturbed” person.
“Initial findings of police investigation of the Resorts World incident this morning, 2nd of June 2017, show that there are no indications of terrorist activity,” Abella said in a Palace news conference. “We also do not find any direct link to terrorist activities in Marawi,” he added.
Meanwhile, the wife of House Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales was among those who died in the Resorts World attack.
The remains of Elizabeth Panlilio-Gonzales, wife of Gonzales, were recovered, along with other bodies, by police and firefighters during the clearing operations.
Mrs. Gonzales was reportedly with her sister Consolacion P. Mijares, who was reported still missing, during the incident.
The senior administration lawmaker and a daughter were part of a group of at least 60 congressmen on a Central and Northern Luzon inspection trip when news about her death was relayed to them. (Genalyn D. Kabiling and Ben R. Rosario)
