Philippine Officials Probe Tacloban School Shooting; Online Extremism Link Unconfirmed

The Department of Justice is examining whether the fatal Tacloban City school shooting forms part of a broader pattern of online radicalization of minors rather than an isolated bullying incident. Department of Justice spokesperson Polo Martinez said the agency is looking into a possible larger trend or pattern of extremism.

He stated that reducing the case to a simple bullying incident would downplay the issue.

Police have documented earlier cases involving minors allegedly groomed and radicalized online. In October 2025, a student in Marikina brought a licensed firearm to school, pointed it at a classmate and himself, then discharged the weapon while joking before dying in the hospital.

45 handgun to school, fired twice into a classroom floor, and then shot himself dead. Authorities also prevented a planned school shooting in Calabarzon in February that involved seven minors allegedly radicalized online.

Many of the documented cases involved contact through Roblox, with communications later moving to Facebook Messenger, Discord, or Telegram. In the Tacloban case, regional police have said the suspects may have been influenced by Gorebox, a game known for graphic violence.

The platform removed its multiplayer online functions in March 2026. " — Global Network on Extremism and Technology report Researchers have linked the broader trend to networks such as 764, which have been associated with sextortion, abuse, and glorification of violence.

" Authorities have not publicly established whether the Tacloban suspects were groomed online or whether any organized group was involved in the attack.