Aug. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Police wearing flak jackets attempted to storm a hijacked bus in Manila where 15 mostly Hong Kong or Chinese tourists were being held hostage by a former Philippine police officer armed with an assault rifle. Officers carrying guns surrounded the bus and tried to break in through windows using a sledgehammer, according to live television footage from the scene in Manila's historic district. There was no visible movement from inside the vehicle almost an hour after the first shots, and bullets were sprayed through a window toward the rear of the vehicle at around 8:20 p.m. The Filipino driver of the bus managed to escape after shooting broke out. China's Xinhua News Agency cited him saying that the gunman opened fire on the Hong Kong hostages, although there has been no confirmation from police. Hong Kong's government plans a press conference at 8:45 p.m. local time. Philippine police identified the gunman as former senior inspector Rolando Mendoza, who they said was dismissed from the force after allegations of extortion. Hong Kong Secretary for Security Ambrose Lee earlier called on the Philippine government to ensure the safety of the hostages. Mendoza, 55, who had lost his job after being charged with extortion and illegal arrest, was demanding to be reinstated, the capital's Chief Superintendent Leocadio Santiago told local channel QTV. Mendoza was dismissed early this year for extorting 20,000 pesos ($444) from a chef over driving and drugs offenses and forcing him to swallow a sachet containing methamphetamine hydrochloride, or ice, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported, citing police records. 'Big Mistake' Signs held up at the bus window read "big mistake to correct a big wrong decision." Police officers forced open the rear door of the bus, only to retreat when more shots were fired, the British Broadcasting Corp. said. The kidnapping hurts "the reputation and image not only of the police force but also of our country," National Police Commission Vice Chairman Eduardo Escueta told ABS-CBN. "We can't afford another scandal." The Philippine government is fighting two armed Islamic groups and a long-running insurrection by Communist guerillas. Recently elected President Benigno Aquino has pledged to crack down on corruption in the police force and end the use of private armies such as the one implicated in the deaths of 57 people on the southern island of Mindanao earlier this year. The county attracted 2.7 million tourists last year, about 4 percent of all arrivals into the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, according to the bloc's website. Malaysia led Southeast Asia with 23.6 million visitors, followed by Thailand with 14.1 million, Singapore with 9.7 million and Indonesia with 6.5 million. Separate Killing A South Korean pastor was shot dead on his way home from an airport in Manila, South Korea's foreign ministry said today. The killing was unrelated to the bus hijacking, ministry spokesman Kim Young Sun told reporters in Seoul. Two of seven other South Koreans who were with the pastor the time of the attack were released, Kim said. In a separate incident, Philippine police authorities filed a case against a colleague for the torture of a robbery suspect, Chief Superintendent Roberto Rongavilla told reporters today. Purported scenes of the alleged offense were caught on a phone camera and drew public outrage after they were aired on TV. A complaint for violation of the Anti-Torture Act was filed against Senior Inspector Joselito Binayug and his supervisors before the Department of Justice, Rongavilla said. Binayug's lawyer, Angelito Castillo, said his client was misidentified, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported Aug. 21. Television footage appears to show a police officer whipping a naked man and pulling a cord attached to the victim's genitals during questioning inside a Manila police station. --With assistance from Clarissa Batino in Manila. Editor: Ben Richardson. To contact the reporter on this story: Cecilia Yap in Manila at cyap19@bloomberg.net; Clarissa Batino in Manila at cbatino@bloomberg.net.