‘KILL KILL KILL’ (16)

KINUMPIRMA ng manananggol ng Lucky South 99 na magsasampa ang kompanyang POGO ng sakdal sa hukuman kontra sa Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) dahil sa itinuturing nila na ilegal na raid sa compound nito sa bayan ng Porac sa Pampanga. Sinabi ni Jovito Barte sa kanyang pagharap sa Kapihan sa QC media forum na hindi maaaring gamitin na ebidensiya ang mga nakalap na katibayan na PAOCC sa ilegal na raid sa Porac.

Maituturing na “fruit of the forbidden tree” ang anumang katibayan ang makakalap ng PAOCC sa ilegal Porac raid, ani Barte. Unang nagbaba ng search warrant si Hukom Belinda Rama ng Branch 14 ng Malolos City Regional Trial Court (RTC), ngunit binawi niya ito noong ika-5 ng Hunyo, ayon sa PAOCC. Nagbaba noong ika-6 ng Hunyo ng bagong search warrant si Presiding Judge Robert Alexander Malig ng Branch 45 San Fernando City RTC. Ginawa ang raid noong ika-3 ng Hunyo.

Katwiran ni Barte sa papel na ibinigay niya sa kolum na ito- “Legal Points”: 1. The implementation of the search warrant, which was recalled due to its infirmities, was illegal and this cannot be cured by the succeeding issued search warrant by an RTC of San Fernando; 2. The conduct of search violated the rules when it did not allow a representative of Lucky Star 99 to join them in every search made of each premises; 3. A copy of the items seized should have been provided the LS representatives;

4. The warrantless arrest made on the foreigners are baseless as they are not committing any crime; 5. The persons arrested were not read their Miranda rights in the language that they understand; and 6. The continued detention of those arrested without a warrant is tantamount to arbitrary detention. Ano ang sagot ng PAOCC?

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PAGPAPATULOY ito ng pangalawang tsapter ng aking aklat “KILL KILL KILL Extrajudicial Killings in the Philippines; Crimes Against Humanity v. Rodrigo Duterte Et. Al.” Tinalakay ko ang ilang yugto ng karahasan at kalupitan sa ilang patayan ng giyera kontra droga.

ANOTHER MASSACRE

BARELY a week after the August 15, 2016 Payatas Massacre, another mass killing, or massacre, occurred in the same depressed urban community that has been widely reputed to be the final destination of the collected garbage in Metro Manila. On the afternoon of August 21, 2016, police operatives killed in broad daylight four of five persons, whom they suspected of being drug users or pushers. They claimed the police operations took place as part of the Oplan Tokhang, the bigger half of the Project Double Barrel. Oplan Tokhang dealt mostly with drug users and pushers, mostly the poor and downtrodden, on the barangay level. The other half, Oplan High Value Target, was supposed to deal with the drug lords in the higher strata of society. Memorandum Circular 1, issued on July 1, 2016, mandates the PNP to pursue Project Double Barrel (See Chapter 1 for details).

A team of police officers composed of Senior Inspector Emil Garcia, SPO3 Allan Formilleza, PO1 James Aggarao, and PO1 Melchor Navisaga raided a shanty that housed a billiard table for pool enthusiasts in the community. They found five garbage collectors, Efren Morillo, Marcelo Daa Jr, Raffy Gabo, Jessie Cule, and Anthony Comendo, playing pool and resting in the shanty hall owned by Daa. They were leisurely passing the time to resume their night work as garbage collectors. According to the witnesses, the four police officers barged into the shanty’s yard and aimed their guns at the victims. Daa, Cule, and Morillo raised their hands in surrender, they said. The police officers “ransacked” the shanty and returned to the yard bearing a silver foil and a lighter. They accused the victims of using drugs. The victims denied the accusation, but the cops dragged them to the back of the house.

“The armed men handcuffed Daa and Morillo. They pulled the electric wire from the ceiling of the hut. They used it to tie Cule’s hands. They fetched Gabo and Comendo who were at the hammock at the back of the house and also tied their hands with electric wire. Then they made Daa, Morillo, Cule, Gabo, and Comendo sit side by side on a bench. The armed men kept on accusing the five captives of being involved in illegal drugs, according to witnesses in a petition, which the victims’ families filed on January 26, 2017 before the Supreme Court to seek the privilege of the writ of amparo.

The witnesses in the petition recounted how the police officers killed the victims: “The armed man made Daa sit on a wooden chair and Morillo on the armrest. Then, without warning, he pointed his firearm at Morillo and shot him on the chest. Morillo fell to the ground bleeding, but he did not lose consciousness. Next, the armed man shot Daa, who fell to the ground beside Morillo. Daa was shot a second time on the head as he lay on the ground. He died.”

PLAYED DEAD. According to Morillo, he played dead despite the chest wound, which was superficial and not fatal. When he was out of the suspects’ sight, he crawled through a hole in the wall, slid down a ravine, trekked up a hill, and sought help when he reached the highway. He was brought to a small clinic for first aid treatment in the adjacent town of Montalban in the Rizal province, but he was returned to the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) upon the Montalban police’s insistence. Morillo said QCPD cops only brought him to the East Avenue Medical Center past midnight. He was shot at 3 pm.

Garcia told GMA News that the victims were armed and shot them first. He added that the men were “notorious drug users and robbers.” Garcia also repeated the oft-repeated ’nanlaban” line, alleging that they were killed because “they fought back.” The petitioners claimed that the police report contradicted the narrative they gave to the media. When police learned that one of the five men survived what was said to be an execution, they took efforts to pursue and locate him, but failed. They later filed charges of direct assault against Morillo.

Marilyn Malimban, Cule’s live-in partner and a petitioner in the case, attested to what happened to the three other victims, Gabo, Cule, and Comendo, as recounted to her by a 14-year-old witness named “Emar,”who witnessed the killings. “They made the three kneel on the ground at the back of the house and shot them to death. Jessie Cule was the last of the three to be killed. He begged to be spared, hugging the legs of one of the armed men and sobbing. As he would not let go of his hold, the man shot him on the nape,” the petition said. (Itutuloy)

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MGA PILING SALITA: “INFERIOR DAVAO: Inferior in thoughts, in words,and in deeds. Matalim ang dila pero mapurol ang diwa. Makapili, traydor, at taksil.” – PL, netizen, kritiko

“KAWAWA ang Senado kapag nagpasukan ang mga Duterte sa 2025. Sila ang kandidato ng China. Wala ng natirang reputasyon matino at matino ang Senado dahil hahawakan sila ng China. Kanlungan ng mga patapon at pipitsugin. Mga tanga at bobo. Mga mamamatay tao at mandarambong. Mga Makapili, traydor, at mga taksil sa bayan. Hawak sila ng China.” – PL, netizen, kritiko