IT was a police officer’s service firearm that injured a seven-year-old boy who was holding the weapon when it accidentally discharged at a Kagman residence on May 21, 2023, the Department of Public Safety said.
On Friday afternoon, Police Officer Raymond L. Saralu was arrested on the charges of aggravated assault and battery, and storage of firearms.
Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph Camacho signed the arrest warrant and set the bail amount at $50,000, DPS said.
Based on the ballistic evidence collected by investigators at the location and analyzed by the Guam Police Department crime lab, it was determined that the shell casings and fragments originated from the police officer’s government-issued firearm, DPS added.
A close relative of the seven-year-old boy, Saralu  will appear before a judge Monday morning for an initial appearance and bail hearing, Variety learned.
Background
On Sunday, May 21, 2023, at about 9 p.m., police responded to a disturbance incident in Kagman. Upon arriving at the scene,  officers learned that a seven-year-old boy had sustained a gunshot wound to the face. The child was rushed to the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. and was later evacuated to Guam for an emergency surgery. Â
The injured child is in stable condition and is expected to recover.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the child and another minor were playing inside a relative’s home when one of them somehow got hold of a registered firearm and, while handling the firearm, accidentally discharged the weapon.
