Motorist faces raps for attacking watchman in San Juan

A woman who went hysterical assaulted a barangay watchman after her car was clamped being in a no parking area in San Juan City on Friday.

Probers are set to file charges against Celeste Astovela, 37, for her actions, caught on a video that has gone viral.

According to Police Community Precinct 1 commander Senior Inspector Edwin Malabanan, they are set to file by Monday cases of alarm and scandal, scandal by deed, oral defamation and physical injuries against Astovela before the San Juan prosecu- tor’s office.

In the video, Astoleva slapped and kicked one of watchmen. She also threw a tantrum and sat down in the middle of Annapolis street in Barangay Greenhills when barangay officers refused to remove the clamp on her Toyota Vios, stalling traffic.

The video has garnered 19,000 shares on Facebook as of yesterday afternoon.

“She went crazy after she saw one of the watchmen taking a video of her actions,” Malabanan said in a phone interview.

The incident happened at around 11:30 a.m. when Astovela parked her vehicle. She was about to go into a bank when a security guard of a building told her to move her car at it was in a no-parking zone.

She got angry and told the guard her transaction at the bank will not take long.

Th guard then told her to move her car a few meters as another motorist needed to go out. Instead of following the guard’s request, she went hysterical.

This prompted the guard to call the barangay hall for assistance. When the peacekeep- ing officers arrived, Astovela hurled insults, went inside her car and honked the horns several seconds.

After the commotion, Astovela’s brother arrived and apologized on her behalf. He was also the one who went to the police station.

Malabanan said the incident could have been avoided had Astovela gone to the barangay hall and paid a fine of P1,000.

Records show Astovela was also involved in a similar incident on the same street sometime last year.