MPD to inventory evidence after crime lab fire

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said Friday he has ordered an inventory of all pieces of evidence and records of the Manila Police District (MPD) after its crime laboratory was struck by a fire on Thursday.

“The MPD crime laboratory must undertake a complete inventory of all the evidence and documents in its office,” he said in a statement.

According to Eleazar, the role of a police crime laboratory as an evidence custodian is an integral part of law enforcement and criminal prosecution, thus the need to keep pieces of evidence intact.

The fire broke out at the police headquarters along United Nations Avenue on Thursday morning. No one was hurt in the blaze.

The Bureau of Fire Protection said the blaze was caused by a chemical, toluene, that sparked and ignited. Eleazar said the BFP is investigating whether the fire was deliberately set.