OZAMIZ CITY—Mayor Reynaldo
Parojinog Sr. has tested positive for gunpowder nitrate, the Philippine
National Police (pnp) said, supporting
police reports he fought back during the drug raid last Sunday, July 30, that
left the mayor and 14 others dead.
This statement came from PNP spokesperson
Chief Superintendent Dionardo Carlos who disseminated their findings to the
media today.
The PNP Crime Laboratory Region 10’s
partial report also said Parojinog sustained two gunshot wounds on his face and
chest.
The said report stated that aside
from the mayor, seven of the 15 fatalities during the predawn raid also yielded
positive results in the paraffin test.
The PNP explained that testing
positive for paraffin means that a gun near a person’s hand has been fired
although it acknowledged that the result of the paraffin test is not conclusive
although it will help in the investigation if the firearms recovered in the
premises were used and there was a gun battle.
Of the 15 dead, families of the 7
refused autopsy for their kin, while 8 consented, of whom are the Parojinogs.
Carlos added that those with
Parojinog also tested positive for traces of gunpowder found on their bodies,
but only the mayor was specified in his briefing.
Carlos added Susan, Parojinog’s
wife and siblings Mona and brother Octavio Jr. died of blast wounds.
The autopsy report showed that
Susan sustained a gunshot wound in her left eye, with the bullet exiting the
back of her head.
A certain bodyguard of Parojinog, identified
as Vicente Torregoza also died due to blast injuries.
Police Scene of the Crime Operation
(SOCO) group of Region 10 who surveyed the crime scene found the grenade pin
inserted in Torregoza’s finger.
This development strengthened City
Police Chief Insp. Jovie Espenido’s earlier claim that the grenade came from
the Parojinogs' group.
The surviving Parojinogs, Vice
Mayor Nova Echavez and brother Reynaldo “Dodo” Jr., are presently detained at the PNP Custodial
Center in Camp Crame.
As this developed, a report quoting
Espenido said that Mayor Parojinog had expressed willingness to turn himself in
earlier in the raid that led to his death on Sunday, July 30.