Gun issued to Customs official used in Ateneo de Zamboanga shooting

SHOOTING. General view of Ateneo de Zamboanga University after a shooting that killed two people, in Zamboanga City on August 18, 2026.

Nonoy Lacson/Rappler

Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno says the shooter’s father, a district commander at the Port of Zamboanga, has been relieved of his post

AT A GLANCE

• A shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University resulted in the deaths of two students, including the shooter, who was armed with a Bureau of Customs-issued handgun.
• The shooter, a minor, attacked a 10th grader before taking his own life, and authorities are investigating whether another firearm involved was also government-issued.
• The university had recently conducted a simulation exercise for active shooter incidents, and local police confirmed that there is currently no ongoing threat to students.

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CEBU, Philippines – One of the guns used in the shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU) on Tuesday morning, August 18, was issued by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to the shooter’s father, the district commander at the Port of Zamboanga, Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno told Rappler.

“I had to relieve him immediately to have an impartial investigation,” Nepomuceno said.

The gun attack, which killed two students, including the shooter, occurred at AdZU’s junior high school campus along Tumaga-Lunzuran Road. Zamboanga Mayor Khymer Olaso said in an ANC interview that the shooter was armed with a high-caliber firearm and a handgun.

Nepomuceno confirmed that the handgun was agency-issued, while authorities were still checking whether the other firearm was also a government-issued weapon.

Police confirmed that the shooter, a minor, was carrying a 9mm pistol. According to their initial report, the shooter went to Room 404 and shot a 10th grader, then went to the third floor, shouted, and shot himself.

The initial police report also said authorities found another pistol inside the classroom where the victim’s body lay. The victim, according to the police, was instantly killed.

“Prior to this, our security team has been preparing for a simulation exercise precisely because we understand the value of keeping everyone, both our students and personnel, safe,” AdZU president Father Guillrey Anthony “Ernald” Andal told reporters on Tuesday.

The school shooting occurred only a month after the AdZU Grade School Department conducted Zamboanga City’s first full “Human-Induced Simulation Exercise” (SIMEX) on July 18. The exercise included a simulation of an active shooter incident.

Andal assured the public that the university would share information on the incident as soon as they are able to receive them. 

Zamboanga City Police Office director Colonel Fidel Fortaleza Jr. said in a Tuesday press conference that they have cleared the area where the incident happened and that all students at the university have been accounted for.

“Wala na po threat at this time (There is no threat at this time),” Fortaleza said. – Rappler.com