Resorts World taps int’l experts to improve security after deadly attack

Resorts World Manila had sought for the services of international security experts following the attack inside the hotel-casino by a lone gunman that left 38 dead and 54 wounded.

"We are determined to regain people’s trust after the tragic incident last week," Stephen Reilly, chief operating officer of the RWM said in a news release on Friday.

This move came as part of the hotel-casino's commitment to review and tighten its security and safety protocols.

"The recent breach in our security and the resulting loss of lives is truly regrettable and we cannot let it happen again," Reilly said.

Resorts World said the private security firm, Blackpanda, "specializes in crisis response, risk management, and security consulting."

"Blackpanda’s breadth of experience covers over 1000 missions across 50 countries in six continents. They have successfully conducted peacetime advisory operations and even counter-terrorist combat missions," Reilly said.

He added that Blackpanda has personnel "who have served at the highest levels of military Special Operations units within the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and the Philippines."

Moreover, Resorts World said that Blackpanda would "identify areas for improvement, recommend risk reduction measures, and guide RWM through its implementation."

Meanwhile, Reilly assured that they "will rebuild and make Resorts World better and stronger."

"A big part of this is to bring in world experts. We are going all out to reassure everybody — our nearly six thousand employees and their families, and the millions who come to visit — that their safety is our priority," he added.

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) said Resorts World failed to comply with its advisory to put additional security measures in place prior to the deadly attack.

NC Lanting Security, the security agency manning Resorts World, maintained that it had "acted accordingly" during the incident.

The Philippine National Police-Supervisory Office on Security and Investigation Agencies said it was in the process of finishing its report on the attack.

The attack happened when a lone gunman identified as Jessie Carlos stormed in the casino of Resorts World Manila in the early hours of Friday, June 2.

He shot at the hotel's facilities, and started a fire in some locations, causing the suffocation of 37 people. He later took his own life.

Carlos was a former tax specialist for the Department of Finance. Carlos was dismissed from his post over misdeclaration in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) and "unexplained wealth." — Marlly Rome Bondoc/MDM, GMA News