DPS confirms law enforcer resides in home where shooting occurred

As the investigation continues to determine what really happened on the night of May 21, when a boy was shot in the face in a residence in Kagman, the Department of Public Safety has officially confirmed that a law enforcement officer resides in the home, meaning a service-issued firearm could be the weapon in question.

In an interview with DPS Commissioner Clement Bermudes last week, he shared some updates regarding the ongoing investigation into the shooting incident in Kagman in May.

Bermudes confirmed that a law enforcement officer resides in the home and that a service-issued firearm was in the home during the incident. Whether the gun involved in the shooting incident was that service firearm remains a question, though.

“It’s part of the investigation whether the serviceman properly stored his weapon away. The challenging part [of this investigation] is that the home had similar caliber weapons to a service-issued firearm. That’s why we can’t outrightly pinpoint whose weapon it was. If there was no other weapon in the home, it would clearly be a service-issued weapon, but that’s not the case,” he said.

In addition, Bermudes said that DPS is collaborating with the Office of the Attorney General’s criminal division in this matter.

“The investigation, on our end, is moving forward. We’re in communication with the Attorney General’s Office now. That’s the collaboration we have to maintain because part of the criminal investigation process is to keep the prosecutor informed of our progress,” he said.

Meanwhile, DPS remains in contact with the Guam Police Department in terms of the ballistics analysis sought in this case.

“We are still in communication with the Guam Police Department. As you know, due to the [typhoon] damage in Guam, it’s a matter of priorities. Once we receive the results of the examination, we will release it. We understand that this is a high-profile case so we want to be careful and let the analysis reveal exactly what weapon was used,” he said.

Bermudes also briefly touched on the law on gun safety and encourages everyone to be responsible if they own a registered firearm as similar incidents may happen.

“The most important part of this [incident] is that a gun was not properly stored and a child was injured in the process. The law is very clear for gun owners. You clear the weapon, meaning no bullets in the chamber. For pistols, remove the magazine, and lock it up. This law was to prevent this kind of incident. We are looking at the way this law was written and this was anticipated when the Weapons Control Act came into effect, which allowed everyone to own a registered firearm short of a 50-caliber. That’s part of gun ownership, but for people who are listening, for the entire community, please clear the weapon and secure it away because kids are curious,” he said.

Last May 21, a 7-year-old boy was shot in the face at a home in Kagman.

Police learned that the child and another minor in the home were playing with the firearm in question before the boy was shot. It remains unclear who shot the minor, whether he shot himself or if he was accidentally shot by the other minor.