Taiwanese probers conclude ballistic tests on PCG guns

MANILA, Philippines - The Taiwenese investigators here on Tuesday have concluded the ballistic tests on the firearms used by the Philippine Coast Guard personnel who were involved in the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in waters off Batanes on May 9.

 

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Deputy Director Virgilio Mendez said there is still no result of the ballistic examination since the "cross matching" of the "specimen" will be done in Taiwan.

 

He added that the pieces of evidence gathered from the Taiwanese fishing boat, Guang Ta Hsin-28, including the slug and the body of the victim, are also in Taiwan.

 

The foreign probers also watched on Tuesday the video footage taken by the PCG, which shows part of the encounter in the Balintang Channel between Filipino authorities and Taiwanese fishermen.

 

Andrew Lim, diplomatic affairs officer of the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office, believes the video footage they watched can help them in their own probe.

 

The Taiwanese investigators are also expected to inspect today the marine vessel of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) involved in the incident. They are set to interview officials from the agency and the PCG on Wednesday,

 

The two countries have swapped teams of investigators as part of the parallel probe on the fatal shooting.

 

The Philippines sent an eight-man NBI team to Taiwan to examine the fishing vessel involved in the shooting incident and interview its crew.

 

The NBI team will also ask for a re-autopsy report on the Taiwenese victim's body after his family refused the Filipino probers' request to conduct the re-autopsy.