British national faces arson raps in Dumaguete

CEBU, Philippines - Attempted arson charges are being readied against a British national for allegedly starting a fire in one of the rooms of Casa Florencia lodging house along Lower Lukewright Street at Poblacion 1 in Dumaguete City  last night.

For the ninth time, Jamshaed Shariff, 57-year-old Briton who is divorced with no permanent address in Dumaguete City, was brought to the police station following the complaint of a certain Menchu Aguilar Consing, daughter of Alona Aguilar popularly known as "Manang Siony" who owns the lodging house.

Shariff allegedly set on fire the door of Room 5 at the 2nd floor of the building, with the use of the bedsheets and pillow cases from Room 2 where he is renting.

A worker of Manang Siony identified as Elenita Dagodog told the police, the occupant of Room No. 9 at the 3rd floor, a certain Uwe Starke, a German national came down to inform the desk about the incident and saw the burning pillow and the shoes of the suspect at the stairway on his way out.

The fire was already extinguished even before the responding firemen could arrive, while the suspect, while walking away at Pinili Street, was stopped by responding policemen. Damage to property was very minimal though.

Shariff vehemently denied having set the door on fire, while the occupant of Room No. 5, a certain Gabre Bosch Mari, also a German national was out together with his family.

He, however, admitted  to have been arrested =nine times and, each time, was released after the expiration of the regulatory period for detention due to failure of his complainants to file charges against him.

It could not be ascertained as to why an attempt to set the door on fire with no other evidences, no CCTV camera, except for the statement issued by Dagodog that she was merely informed by one lodger  building that it was Shariff who was responsible for the crime. (FREEMAN NEWS)