Minor charged for "killing" Masangkay

CEBU, Philippines - A 17-year-old boy is now facing robbery with homicide charges before the Talisay City Prosecutor’s Office in relation to the killing of former Regional State Prosecutor Hernando Masangkay.

The Talisay City police, through its chief Supt. Henry Biñas, charged the minor driver of Masangkay and two other unidentified men, who were allegedly with him when the crime was committed reportedly last June 25. It was however two days later when Masangkay’s body was found inside his house in Camella Homes, Barangay Lawaan 1.

The 72-year-old former prosecutor succumbed to a stab wound in his left throat and another in the shoulder.

Investigators had earlier theorized that the crime was possibly spawned by personal grudge against the victim, as the valuable things inside his house are still there and his wallet still had cash in it while his mobile phone was still inside his room when he was found by police.

However, the victim’s 32-year-old son, Reginald, told police that his father’s gold necklace and expensive watch were gone.

The minor, who earlier denied involvement in the killing, claiming he was somewhere else at the commission of the crime, has reportedly left some circumstantial evidences in the crime scene, according to the police chief.

The suspect was also reportedly caught by the closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera following Masangkay to the parking area of a mall at around 4 p.m. June 25. It was the lotto ticket, with the outlet printed on it, found inside Masangkay’s room that led the police to check on the said mall’s CCTV.

The suspect, who admitted being the driver on-call of Masangkay, had earlier told police that he last saw the victim a month before he died. And that day, he claimed that he was attending his night class, but based on the investigation conducted by PO2 Jundave David, he did not show up in the class on the day the victim was murdered.

Police believed that Masangkay, a widower who was living on his own, was murdered on the night of that same day.

Apart from the pieces of evidence gathered by the police, attached to the complaint against the minor and his companions were the joint affidavit of PO3 Mikie Espina and PO2 Senfuesca and the three-page statement of Reginald.     (FREEMANNEWS)