ILOILO City – An officer of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Region 6 was arrested for discharging his firearm during an apparent domestic altercation.
Jail Officer 2 Vicente Alojipan was detained at the police station in La Paz district. He faces criminal and administrative charges.
Alojipan was having an argument with his wife in their house in Barangay Mansaya, La Paz at around 11:45 a.m. Saturday when he fired his service firearm, a .9mm pistol, police investigation showed.
The jail officer appeared drunk at the time, said Chief Inspector Ariel Pico, La Paz police chief, citing witnesses.
“His (Alojipan) neighbors were alarmed. They feared stray bullets would hit them,” Pico said.
Illegal discharge of firearm and alarm and scandal are among the charges the 45-year-old jail officer faces, police said.
The BJMP will conduct its own investigation into the incident, said Superintendent Gilbert Peremne, deputy regional director for administration.
If Peremne were to be believed, Alojipan would discharge his firearm whenever he gets inebriated.
“We will probably recommend him (Alojipan) for a summary hearing,” said Peremne. “He tainted the credibility and image of the organization.”
The BJMP may charge Alojipan for “being notoriously undesirable,” which is punishable by dismissal from the service under the Comprehensive BJMP Administrative Disciplinary Machinery, Peremne said./PN
