KIM CHIU Survives WEDNESDAY Morning SHOOTING ATTEMPT at Her VAN

It can be very surprising, shocking even, when bad things happen to good people. The Philippines has a shameful history of violence on the road with incidents ranging from drive-by shootings to ambush attacks on vehicles negotiating traffic in the streets, usually done by assailants riding in tandem on motorcycles. This Wednesday morning, such a riding-in-tandem attack took place in Quezon City, leaving one private van sporting bullet-hole damage. The big surprise here is who the passenger of the attacked vehicle was; not a prominent figure in politics, police or the military at all, but a big Kapamilya star instead.

ABS-CBN News reports that an unidentified riding in tandem pair shot several times at a van transporting ABS-CBN actress Kim Chiu early this February 4. The incident occurred along Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City, with the assailants passing Chiu’s van and firing several shots at the vehicle in a strafing run before making their getaway. Luckily the actress, who was headed to ABS-CBN for a scheduled taping, was not harmed in the shooting, or any of her companions. Only the van sustained damage during the event. It was still quite a close call however, as Kim makes mention on social media.

Chiu’s Instagram post narrates the not-tragic but still dreadful story. She was on her way to the Kapamilya network studio at around 6 AM, accompanied by a personal assistant and driven in the van by her chauffeur. The actress was actually trying to sneak in a nap in her seat when the shots from the riding-in-tandem woke her up. To her shock, a spent bullet had gone through the windshield where her head would have been position if not for her napping. She photographed the projectile and shared it online.

View this post on Instagram

A lot of you have been texting and calling. can’t answer right now. Thank you for checking on me. Means a lot. Yes I am safe po. I’m ok and my P.A. And my driver as well. Papa Jesus protected us. I dont have an idea what really happened, mistaken identity? I guess?? Napag tripan?.. This is a bad joke. 6am on my way to taping, I was asleep inside my car then I heard several gun shots, 8 to be exact. I was shocked and ask my driver what happened, then I saw this bullet on the windshield where my head was laying “buti nakahiga ako.” Pano kung tinuloy ko magbasa ng script?... I was so scared, I dont know what to feel right now. Wala naman akong kaaway or ka atraso. Why me?. Kung sino man ang gumawa nito Diyos na ang bahala sa inyo dalawa at the end of the day inisip ko nalang walang nasaktan sa amin. God protected us. Salamat po.

A post shared by Kim Chiu 🌸 (@chinitaprincess) on Mar 3, 2020 at 4:59pm PST

Kim Chiu can only marvel at her good fortune that she decided to catch a few more minutes’ shut-eye rather than read through her taping script of the day; in that case her head would have been up and risked being hit by the bullet that got into her van interior. While very disturbed at her close call, she is confident that all of them in the vehicle were protected by God in that short ordeal. And while Chiu had been too busy to answer calls or messages asking for her condition, she is also thankful to fans for their concern. Before heading on to her ABS-CBN taping she left parting words for her attackers, whom she theorizes may have mistaken her for somebody else.

Image from The Filipino Times