Man burns house, holds 2 boys hostage in Consolacion

A man believed to be mentally unstable set his aunt’s house on fire then held two boys hostage at knife-point in Consolacion town, northern Cebu last Friday afternoon.

Eight houses were destroyed in the fire.

The hostage-taking ended when police subdued the 21-year-old suspect Jelo Rey Ramos.

One of the boys sustained minor cuts.

Police said Ramos went berserk after he and his older sister Angelica argued in their aunt’s house in sitio East Binabaga,  barangay Tayud.

Barangay tanods were called to help stop the fight.

The house was already on fire when Ramos was seen fleeing.

Tanods looked for Ramos. When they spotted him, the man grabbed two boys aged seven and five years old.

The older boy  fought back and grappled for the knife until he was able to escape.

Ramos refused to release the other boy and pointed a knife at him.

Ramos told the tanods that he would only surrender if someone took  a video of his holding the boy hostage.

Police arrived and tried to talk to the man.

During the course of the negotiation, one of the policemen found a chance to subdue the man.

The boy was brought to a hospital for treatment. The two boys were later brought to the Women and Children’s Protection Desk for stress debriefing, said said PO1 Marivic Pepito.

Some neighbors told police that the man was a known drug user which may have affected his mental state.

Police said the owner of the burned house is in Mindanao. The fire alarm  was received at 2:06 p.m. The fire was contained at 2:50 p.m. The cause of the blaze, which caused  P600,000 in property damage, still has to be determined.