MANILA, Philippines — The casket of the late young actor JM Canlas was donated to Jerhode Jemboy Baltazar who was killed by cops in Navotas allegedly due to a case of "mistaken identity."
JM's family announced that the "Kiko Boksingero" and "ANi" actor had passed away last August 3 at the age of 17 though they did not disclose details about his death. Coincidentally, Jemboy was also 17 years old when he was killed.
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The young actor was buried over the weekend as noted by JM's older brother and fellow actor Jerom, who thanked everyone who visited his brother's wakes on his Facebook account.
"Dama po namin ang lahat ng inyong pakikiramay. Hindi po namin inaasahan ang nag-uumapaw na bisita. Sigurado ako si JM hindi niya rin inaasahan pero tuwang-tuwa ‘yun," Jerom said. "Pasensya na po dahil may mga ibang hindi na nakapasok dahil sa sobrang daming tao. Ang daming nagmamahal sa’yo, JM! Nag-uumapaw!"
Jerom also asked for continuous prayers for his family and JM's soul, "Hindi po namin alam paano makakayanan, pero magpapakatatag po kami, tayo—para kay JM."
In a separate Facebook post, Jerom shared that JM's casket was donated for Jemboy's family to use and called for justice over the teenager's death.
The actor praised JM for being able to do something generous even after passing, "Ang galing mo talaga JM! Sigurado akong sumisigaw ng hustisya ang bunso namin sa langit."
Six police officers have been detained and charged over Jemboy's killing, including the police officer who fired into the water in what he thought were just warning shots, according to Navotas City police chief Col. Allan Umipig.
Umipig has also acknowledged the police’s lapses in judgment in the operation. — with reports from Cristina Chi
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