Boy falls prey to stepdad’s grenade trap in Cotabato

A 13-year-old boy fell victim to his stepfather’s makeshift grenade trap over the weekend in Carmen town in Cotabato province, police said. The boy, identified as Jobert “Jun-Jun" Abellana, accidentally detonated the explosive when he picked up bamboo poles hiding the grenade, which was positioned as a booby trap or a victim-initiated explosive device. Abellana’s stepfather, Tirzo Librando, tried to stop him from picking the bamboo poles, but it was too late. The incident occurred at 7:10 a.m. last Saturday, when the two were tending their farm at Barangay (village) Ugalingan in Carmen town. Abellana was killed in the explosion, while Librando sustained injuries and was brought to a nearby medical facility for immediate treatment. Local police quoted a witness as saying that Librando designed the grenade trap to target someone threatening to attack his rice fields. Region 12 director Chief Superintendent Josefino Cataluno had already ordered Cotabato provincial police head Senior Superintendent Norberto Batislaong to create a special investigative body to look into Abellana’s death. A PNP statement quoted Batislaong as saying that Librando should be liable for the death of his stepson. "We sympathize with the loss of Jun-Jun, but the stepfather needs to answer the death of his stepson. The presence of the grenade fixed as a trap in his rice field is already illegal. He also violates the Comelec Law 8714," Batislaong said. The police officer was referring to the Commission on Elections’ resolution banning the use and possession of firearms and “deadly weapons" like grenades during the election season. - Sophia Dedace/RSJ, GMANews.TV