Chinese woman arrested after throwing soya at cop in MRT 3 station
A Chinese woman was arrested after throwing a cup of soya at a police officer on duty at the MRT 3 Boni station Saturday morning.
According to a police report, the Chinese woman identified as Jiale Zhang entered the bag inspection area at the station and the security guard saw a cup of soya inside a paper bag. She was asked to consume the soya but she refused and insisted to bring it inside. She was barred by the security personnel from entering the platform area.
PO1 William Cristobal, police officer on duty, tried to explain to Zhang the newly-implemented policy of MRT 3 not to bring any form of liquid inside the train. Zhang splashed the cup of soya to Cristobal which landed in his uniform.
Cristobal and the Chinese were turned over to the Mandaluyong City Police for investigation and proper disposition.
The Department of Transportation announced the list of liquids not allowed inside MRT 3.
In a memorandum, "bottled drinks, water and any liquid substance" are banned inside all stations of MRT 3 because it "can be mixed to form a liquid bomb."
According to the management of MRT 3, they are implementing stricter security protocols citing the recent bomb attacks in Southern areas of the country.
"These guidelines are based on the latest bombing incident in southern Philippines, as well as intel reports that are coming in. Given these, we cannot let alone the safety & security of our riders," the MRT 3 management said in a statement.
"It has been proven that an attack in a railway system is highly possible, and we do not want a repeat of the unfortunate incident on Dec. 30, 2000 (Rizal Day Bombings) where a number of our people died and suffered," they added.
DOTr also released the list of liquids permitted "upon validation and approval of the security personnel and station police officers." These are:
Baby formula / breast milk in bottles, if the passenger is travelling with a baby or small child;
Drinking water to be used by the baby or small child;
All prescription and over-the-counter medications;
Liquids including water, juice or liquid nutrition or gels for passenger with a disability or life condition;
Life-support and life-sustaining liquids such as bone marrow, blood products, and transplant organs;
Items used to augment the body and for medical and cosmetics reasons such as mastectomy products, prosthetic breast, bras or shells containing gels, saline solution, or other liquids;
and gel or frozen liquids needed to cool disability or medical-related items used by persons with disabilities or medical conditions.
DoTr assured the public the seized items by security personnel, including previously prohibited items, can be returned to its owners "upon proper verification through the presentation of appropriate identification" to the station supervisor.
"The DOTr MRT 3 is seeking a deeper understanding from the riding public as the agency is strictly implementing a more effective security regulation," the statement read. Cristina Eloisa Baclig/DMS
