A 44-year-old police officer was shot dead by his seven-year-old son at their house in Barangay Andres Bonifacio, Sagay City, Negros Occidental, on Saturday, April 27.
The victim was identified as Staff Sergeant Lernie Alacha, who was assigned at the Sagay City Police Station.
Captain Judesses Catalogo, public information officer of the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office, said Sunday, April 28, that the victim's son heard his parents arguing inside their bedroom after having their lunch.
The tension between the couple came after the victim learned that some followers of his live-in partner's TikTok account were reportedly engaging with her.
After seeing the conflict between his parents, the victim's son took his father's service firearm, a Glock 17 .9mm caliber, that was stored in a plastic box outside the couple's room, then entered the room and shot Alacha, who was hit on the neck and immediately killed Alacha.
The son is now in the custody of the Women and Children's Protection Desk (WCPD), as the investigation is ongoing.
Irene Dayanan, 33, Alacha's live-in partner, said in radio interviews that her husband was jealous because some of her followers on her social media account were messaging her.
Dayanan said their fight escalated into physical violence in front of their children.
She said this is the third incident involving their seven-year-old child.
The first time was when he tried to hack his father when he saw that she was beaten by Alacha.
The second time, she said, was when he grabbed his father's firearm and tried to shoot him, but he managed to grab the gun back.
Lt. Col. John Moycat, Sagay City police chief, said that all the people inside the house were subjected to the paraffin test, while the body of Alacha was also subjected to an autopsy examination.
The initial investigation showed that Dayanan is the fourth wife of Alacha.
Dayanan admitted that she wanted to leave Alacha.
Brigadier General Jack Wanky, regional director of Police Regional Office-6, said he does not believe that the seven-year-old suspect was capable of shooting his father.
"All persons inside the house should be considered persons of interest in relation to the incident," Wanky said in a separate radio interview.
He added that the circumstances of the crime are "still not clear."
"There is a possible angle of suicide, and the fastest excuse is to point to the child as the suspect because he cannot be prosecuted as he is still a minor," Wanky said.
The official reminded police officers to be responsible for taking care of their service firearms by placing them away from the reach of their children.*