Judge sets date of promulgation

The fate of SP01 Marcial Ocampo, who is accused of killing Cebu City Bantay Dagat Project Director Elpidio "Jojo" de la Victoria, would be known on September 18 after Regional Trial Court judge Ireneo Lee Gako Jr. scheduled the promulgation of judgment on that day.

This came after the presentation in court yesterday of a rebuttal witness for the prosecution and then both the private prosecutors and the defense agreed to endorse the case to the court for decision.

Gako has ordered the opposing lawyers to submit to the court their respective written arguments, in the form of memoranda, not later than Monday so the court could start evaluating their arguments and lay down the verdict of the case 28 days later.

Many court observers have admired Gako for the speedy disposition of the case, because he decided to hold hearings of the case twice a week.

The private prosecutors yesterday presented before the court TV reporter Lou Anne Rondina of GMA-7 Balitang Bisdak to rebut the claim of Ocampo that he had a haircut that afternoon.

Ocampo claimed that it was impossible for him to have shot de la Victoria because when the latter was shot in San Roque, Talisay City on the afternoon of April 12, he was at a barbershop along Tres de Abril Street for a haircut.

To support his claim, Ocampo even presented before the court barber Andrade Comision, who said that he trimmed the hair of Ocampo from 3 p.m. to 3:20 p.m. although Ocampo said that he had a haircut starting at 3:20 p.m. and was finished 30 minutes later.

Defense lawyer Hector Fernandez tried to block the presentation of the news reporter as rebuttal witness for the prosecution citing certain procedures of the rules of courts, but the court rejected his objection.

Rondina testified that she was able to interview Comision's brother, Adonis, on April 19. Adonis reportedly told her that he cut the hair of Ocampo at around 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. of April 12 and not at 3 p.m. as claimed by his brother.

The reporter, assisted by private prosecutors Fritz V. Quiñanola and Rameses Villagonzalo, presented the footage of her interview with Adonis, who was surprised why Ocampo went to the barbershop that day.

"Domingo man g'yod unta siya magpatupi, dili man Miyerkoles," Adonis said.

After Rondina's testimony, the defense quickly brought Ocampo back to the witness stand. This time, Ocampo admitted that he had his hair cut by Adonis, but it was on the morning of April 10, not on April 12.

Ocampo claimed that he decided to have another haircut with Andrade Comision, because he was not satisfied with the work of Adonis.

Quiñanola said he also wanted to present as rebuttal witness the gunsmith in Danao City to prove that Ocampo had a companion when he went to Danao City to have a .45 caliber pistol fixed on the early morning of April 12.

"Ang tinuod g'yod diay, sayo na si Ocampo nga miadto sa Danao. Mga alas nueve sa buntag nabalik na kana siya dinhi sa syudad," Quiñanola said after the hearing.

The private prosecutors want to convince judge Gako that Ocampo lied in his testimonies so the court would not give weight to his defenses.

Since most of the prosecution witnesses positively identified Ocampo as the man who shot de la Victoria, his only defense is to convince the court that it could be impossible for him to do the crime because he was not there.