Police probes grenade blasts at Negros Oriental town mayor’s home

DUMAGUETE -- The Bacong police here is conducting a full blown investigation to identify the culprits in the grenade-throwing incident Tuesday night at the residence of Mayor Jocelyn Alviola and husband Vice Mayor Lenin Alviola of Bacong.

The police headed by Police Senior Inspector Luis Lakandula has in custody of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage that could help in the investigation, while the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is conducting its own.

Initial probe showed that about 8:45 p.m. Tuesday,  riding-in-tandem suspects lobbed what was believed to be a fragmentation grenade at the garage and exploded at the parked Montero vehicle of the couple.

The explosion damaged the right side of the vehicle with dents and at least four holes being hit by shrapnels and busted rear tires.

The mayor’s pregnant daughter-in-law Diane Jane Justiniani Alviola, 30, who was sitting at the porch about five meters from the explosion site, was also hit by shrapnels resulting in burns in her right neck, arm, leg, and foot. 

The victim only heard of the grenade blast while she was conversing with somebody in the cellular phone.

Two shrapnels also hit the sala set at the porch area.

Mayor Jocelyn Alviola and Vice Mayor Lenin Alviola were already at the master’s bedroom. 

The mayor said she was about to play crossword puzzle with her cellphone when she heard a loud explosion, thinking at first it was at the back portion of their rooftop. Minutes later, she was informed by her daughter-in-law about the explosion. 

She could not think of anybody who may have the reason to do it to the family after having been in politics for many decades, and she does not have threats ever since.

The mayor firmly believes that personal feud is “totally out of the picture” but does not discount the possibility of politics angle because many have ambitions to become mayor of the municipality in the next political exercise as filing of candidacies is already slated this October.

Before the incident, the mayor had visitors from the barangays, including barangay kagawads and a barangay captain.  

The kagawad who refused to be identified said she saw a male person at the vicinity that she could not identify and who was not from Bacong while waiting for three others from the barangay who sought their help and referred the same to the mayor.

Minutes after the meeting, an eye witness who just came from a basketball game noticed a motorcycle where the driver and the backrider were using t-shirts as bonnets.  

It slowed down in front of the mayor’s residence and lobbed the grenade before fleeing going to east direction, then to the north going to Dumaguete. (PNA)