Blast, gunfire, rock Philippine jail, leaving 10 dead, including 2 Chinese drug convicts

A blast from a suspected grenade and gunshots rocked a Philippine jail, leaving 10 inmates dead, including two alleged Chinese drug criminals, officials said Friday. The warden was seriously injured in Thursday night’s explosion.

Senior Inspector Xavier Solda, spokesman of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, said eight of the inmates killed on Thursday night in the Paranaque City jail in metropolitan Manila faced drug cases, including two Chinese nationals found with large amounts of drugs. The two others were facing robbery and homicide charges.

“During the initial investigation, we can confirm that there was an explosion inside [but] as to what caused the explosion, the investigation is still ongoing,” Solda told reporters.

He said they were checking reports that prior to the explosion the inmates wanted to meet the warden after learning they were to be transferred to another facility.

Solda says investigators were looking at whether the blast was part of an escape attempt but were waiting to talk to the wounded warden.