TORCHED. A black sports utility vehicle parked by the roadside in Gen. Santos City was burned by still unidentified men Thursday night (Nov. 9, 2023). The fire was put out after it destroyed about 50 percent of the vehicle while a pickup (inset) was saved by passersby and residents just when the fire was starting. (Photos courtesy of Bombo Radyo)
KORONADAL CITY – Five sports utility vehicles (SUVs) were set ablaze by still unidentified men in various streets in Gen. Santos City on Thursday night for reasons still unknown to police authorities.
“We already have persons of interest based on the security camera footage. We are running after them,” Col. Nicomedes Olaivar, Gen. Santos City police chief, said in a radio interview Friday.
One luxury vehicle was destroyed by fire, he said, and four other SUVs had burns on their tires, under the engines, and in the fenders, indicating there were attempts to burn the cars.
Citing initial reports, Olaivar said the suspects were on motorcycles and roamed around streets where SUVs were parked along the road.
“They were seen putting something under the parked cars and left, then a fire erupted,” he said. “Passersby or car owners quickly put out the fire and saved the vehicles.”
Quoting witnesses, he said there were teenagers among the perpetrators.
The torched vehicles were parked by the roadside along Narangita, Marang, and Niyog Streets in downtown Gen. Santos City.
“Maybe the suspects enjoyed seeing these cars on fire,” he said. “As to why they do it or who ordered them is what our investigators are trying to find out.”
He said the Bureau of Fire Protection is taking the lead in the investigation. (PNA)
