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US soldier arrested over gun ban


An American serviceman was arrested in the southern Philippine city of General Santos for carrying his firearm in violation of the gun ban in line with prevailing election period, radio station dzBB reported Thursday. Task Force GenSan nabbed Army Master Sergeant Steve Saunders while in a drinking spree inside a bar, the same radio report said. Saunders is a member of the US Army Engineering Corps and United Nations Peacekeeping Force who are constructing a school building in the village of Bawing in the said city. The US military personnel was brought to the Philippine Army headquarters in Camp Awang, Maguindanao and will be turned over to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila in the next few days, the report said. In a bid to prevent election-related violence, the Commission on Elections implemented the gun ban on January 14, four months before the May 14 mid-term polls. The ban ends on June 14. Gun owners violating the ban face imprisonment of up to six years and perpetual disqualification from voting or seeking election. Those who want to be exempted from the ban should apply for proper exemption at the Comelec office in Manila. - Amita Legaspi, GMANews.TV

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