Captain Rolando Mendoza, a highly decorated former Senior Police Officer who was relieved from his post due to an extortion and robbery complaint against him took Hongkong tourists into hostage, Monday August 23, 2010 inside the Hong Thai tourist bus in front of the Quirino Grandstand, Manila.

After 10 hours of hostage drama, 7 hostages and the gunman himself were killed and 18 survived, 1 civilian and an officer injured.

Taking Hostage

Dressed in a PNP uniform along with an M16 automatic rifle, he catched a free ride with the Hong Thai tourist bus at the Fort Bonifacio, Intramurus. The bus had 25 tourists passengers and was heading to their final tour destination. When they arrived at the Rizal Park, at about 8AM, he told the driver that he was taking the bus on hostage. The bus was stopped in front of the Quirino Grandstand in Manila.  At 10AM, the hostage taking was reported. The area was cordoned and the negotiation began.

The gunman posted a large piece of paper on the windshield with it written, “Release Final Decision.” There was another piece of paper posted at the front door of the bus which said, ” Big Mistake to Correct a Big Decision.” He wanted to clear his name and demanded his reinstatement with his former job including his full benefits.

The Negotiation

During the first phase of negotiation through the gunman’s brother Senior Police Officer II Gregorio Mendoza and a certain Manila local official, he released nine hostages including children, elderly and the sick. He requested food for the remaining fifteen hostages and fuel for the bus’ air conditioning unit.

After several hours, the gunman’s brother delivered the reply of the Ombudsman regarding his request of reinstatement. Later, the gunman’s brother who served as negotiator was arrested for instigating the gunman. Seconds after the successful arrest of his brother, the gunman fired his gun inside the bus.

Then, the driver who was cuffed into the wheels escaped through the driver’s window, running, and shouting that everybody in the bus was dead.

The Assault

After several minutes, SWAT members and other police officers started their assault. Police smashed glasses using the sledgehammer at the back, at the right side of the bus, on the front door, and the windshield. The gunman responded and a civilian far enough from the bus was hit by stray bullet.

At about 8:20PM local time, a policeman wearing protective gears attempted to breach the bus through the emergency exit door but retreated when the gunman fired into his direction. Police on the other hand couldn’t shoot the gunman because he was using a hostage as shield. Several hostages were seen crawling towards the emergency exit door.

Then on the final assault, the gunman hit one of the sharpshooter but he was also hit on the head by sniper shot while shielding on one of the hostages near the front door.

Photos

Video Footage of the Hostage Drama and the Assault

Effects of the Hostage Drama

Few of the effects of the hostage drama are:

• The Security Bureau of Hong Kong issued a “Travel Ban” to the Philippines for all Hong Kong citizens and urged all the tour groups in the Philippines to leave immediately the country.
• The Philippine Stock Exchange Index slid 1 percent to 3,576.51 at 10:26 a.m, the day after the hostage incident.

The Hostage Taker

Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza, 55-year old and the other four PNP officers were dismissed after a Manila hotel chef filed complaint against them for planting drugs to blackmail him and extorted him 20,000 Philippine peso.

The Allegation

The extortion and robbery case against Senior Inspector Rolando Del Rosario Mendoza, started from a viral email alleging that Mendoza and other police officers planted illegal drugs and paraphernalia into his car, brought him to the police headquarter,  and forced him to swallow shabu, and robbed him 20,000 Philippine Peso, in 2008.

Here’s the original email and originally written in capital letters:

HI ED.

THANKS FOR THE E MAIL. I’D LIKE TO TELL YOU MY SON’S EXPERIENCE WITH THE MANILA POLICE LAST WEDNESDAY EVENING AT ABOUT 10PM.

CHRISTIAN WENT TO THE CONDO AT THE CORNER OF VITO CRUZ AND TAFT AVE. TO RETURN HIS COUSIN’S LAPTOP. HE HANDED THE LAPTOP TO HIS COUSIN AND WENT BACK TO THE CAR. WHEN HE GOT TO THE CAR, THERE WAS A COP ASKING HIM WHAT HE WAS DOING THERE, WHY HE WAS PARKED ON A NO PARKING AREA. CHRISTIAN SAID, IF IT WAS A NO PARKING AREA WHY IS IT THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF CARS PARKED. THE COP SAID OPEN YOUR TRUNK AND CHRIS ASKED, WHY YOU HAVE A WARRANT?

ANYWAY, THE CAR DOORS AND WINDOWS WERE OPEN AND ANOTHER COP SEARCHED THE INTERIOR WHILE ANOTHER OPEND THE TRUNK. IN THE TOOLBOX THEY FOUND THE PLASTIC END OF SPARK PLUGS. THE COP SAID PARAPHARNELIA. THE SAME COP BROUGHT TO THE TRUNK USED PLASTIC SACHETS OF SHABU AND STARTED TO SHOUT DRUGS TO, DRUGS.

SO THEY TOOK CHRISTIAN AND YOU KNOW WHERE, TO THE ATM OF BPI. THEY SAW HIS CARD AND ASKED HIM TO WITHDRAW ALL HIS MONEY. FORTUNATELY HE DOES NOT KEEP HIS MONEY THERE. ONLY HIS SALARY IS DEPOSITED THERE. SO THE COPS WERE INISTING THAT HE WAS A USER. AND MY SON WAS SAYIN DO A TEST NOW SO THEY’LL SEE IF HE’S POSITIVE. HE SAID I CANT WORK IN MANDARIN AS A CHEF IF I’M A USER. HE SAID HE HAD TO GET POLIICE, NBI, BARANGAY, COURT AND MEDICAL CLEARANCE BEFORE HE COULD START WORKING. SO THE POLICE TOOK HIM TO THE HEADQUARTERS AT UN AVE. AND THERE FORCED HIM TO EAT SHABU. IT TOOK A WHILE BEFORE HE ATE IT. SIX COPS WERE PUNCHING HIM AND SCARING HIM WITH THEIR GUNS. TILL THR POOR GUY PEED IN HIS PANTS OF FEAR. HE HAD TO SWALLOW THE DRUG. THEN THE COPS STARTED TO LAUGH. NOW WE’LL SEE IF YOU ARE NEGATIVE OF SHABU.

200,000PHP AND WE’LL LET YOU GO. OR THIS WILL BE AT THE FISCALS OFFICE IN THE MORNING .CALL YOUR FRIENDS AND PARENTS. THIS ORDEAL STARTED AT 10PM. HE WAS ABLE TO CALL ME AT 5AM THE FOLLOWING DAY. POOR SON OF MINE WAS REALLY TRAUMATIZED. A FRIEND OF HIS CAME WITH TWENTY THOUAND THE COPS GRABBED IT AND LET HIM GO AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED. I WAS IN LIPA ALL THE TIME THIS WAS HAPPENNING. CHRIS LATER FOUND OUT FROM HIS COUSIN THAT SEVEN OF HER FRIENDS WERE ALSO APPREHENDED BY THE SAME GROUP OF COPS AND ALSO TOOK THEM TO THEIR ATM’S. THEY GOT ALL THEIR MONEY IN THE ACCOUNT. THIS COP IS CAPT.MENDOZA OF THE MOBILE GROUP AND SARGENT GAVINO.

YOU GUYS KNOW INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN THE SERVICE, PLS LET THEM KNOW ABOUT THIS.I WOULD ALSO LIKE FOR THEM TO GIVE THE MONEY THEY TOOK BACK TO MY SON SO HE COULD GIVE IT BACK TO HIS FRIEND. THE MORE PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THIS SO CALLED POLICE OFFICERS THE BETTER. THIS IS THE TYPE OF GOVERNMENT THAT WE HAVE NOW. DISARM THE POPULATION AND THIS TYPE OF ABUSE HAPPENS. THANKS AND PASS IT ON.

BOB

This viral email is said to have reached the email-inbox of PNP Chief Sonny Razon who ordered the investigation about the allegation. Then the victim was urged to file formal complaints against the cops.

Another email (said to be originated from Didi Guannzon-Lucindo) explains what happened after the then PNP Chief received the viral email. Here’s part of the email:

The following day, May 14, I got a call from an officer of the Manila Police District, who then e-mailed me :

“I am POLICE SUPERINTENDENT Eleazar Pepito Matta, I gave you a call you this afternoon regarding the email “Beware of a group of Manila Cops”, at present I am the Chief of the General Assignment Section of the Manila Police District, which has jurisdiction over erring police officers in violation of the existing laws, rules/policies of the PNP.

As a backgrounder of the said case/issue, our Office already received orders to conduct investigation regarding the matter as early as April 17,2008. Last April 25,2008, Sr Insp Mendoza and PO3 Gavino were sanctioned administratively, they were relieved from their present assignment with the District Mobile Patrol Unit (DMPU) and was subsequently transferred to the District Mobile Force (DMF).

Administrative charges were filed against him on April 25, 2008 and then he was relieved from his post as the chief of the District Mobile Patrol Unit. However, the Philippine National Police Internal Affairs Service recommended the dismissal of the case because the complainant, Christian Kalaw failed to attend the dismissal proceeding. The same is true to the Manila Prosecutors Office Eighth Division because of the same reason.

But by January, the Office of the Ombudsman found the accused guilty and ordered the dismissal of  Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza and the other four cops, stripping off their retirement benefits, and disqualifying them from getting any other government offices.

However, a certain Andres Rizal posted his comments at the blog where these emails were posted, telling a different twist of the story. This time, the erring cops were the victims of the viral email. Here’s what Andress Rizal posted:

andres rizal April 6, 2009 at 1:47 am | #18

whats the update with regards to their crminal and administrative cases? its been almost a year now.. anyone?

andres rizal April 30, 2009 at 10:25 pm | #19

now i have the latest information about these cops.. based on records that a friend gave me.. they were all cleared out from their ciminal charges.. why? the story that this so called “chef” is full of crop after all..it was all fabricated, just to cover up the whole true story, first of all he was not even a regular chef at the said hotel, we was just an assitant there and not in a regular basis..the time that he was arrested for a traffic violation, he was not even connected with tha hotel anymore..

andres rizal April 30, 2009 at 10:34 pm | #20

this is the other part on why these cops was cleared, the story that this chef gave to the authorities was not supported by any evidence… itproves the viral e mail that was loaded last year all over the net is an imaginary one, just to cover up a family problem..imagine the abuse that can be done to our computers now,destroying peoples lives with the use of an e mail…

andres rizal April 30, 2009 at 10:48 pm | #21

My freind from la salle told me this story, that this ****** is really a drug addict..the time that the incident happen last year the father of ****** wanted him to take a drug test, ****** afraid of his father then admitted that he will be tested positive if the drug examination will be taken.. ****** parents could not take the shame from having a drug addict son.it was then that ****** made a story that these cops forced him to swallow shabu..just to cover up his dependense from illegal drug, and to prevent further disgrace of the family they diverted the story to the cops…just to show others that they dont have a drug addict son..

But what ever is the real story, the Police Senior Officer is already dead along with his victims.

Sources:

• Sacked policeman kills 8 Chinese in Philippines coach hijacking
• Gunman and seven hostages killed in Manila bus siege
• 7 hostages killed in Manila bus hijacking
• Eight Hong Kong Tourists Die in Bloody End to Manila Bus Siege
• Nine dead after Manila bus siege (by UKPA through Google hosted news)
• Crooked Manila Cops Get Served by Viral E-Mail
• Who is this hostage-taking cop?
• Philippines Bus Hostage Drama (Gunman shot dead)
• Bus hostage situation manila – Philippines 23rd of August 2010
• Philippine SWAT storm bus with hostages in Manila
• Philippine Stocks Fall Most in Two Weeks After Tourists Killed
• RP consulate in HK swamped with protests over hostage crisis

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