NBI to probe Pasay judge’s slay

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has joined the investigation into the killing of Pasay City Judge Henrick Gingoyon and will release a sketch of one of the three killers in the next few days.

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez has ordered the NBI to help in the investigation.

Yesterday, police in Cavite made public their own sketch of one of the suspects, a man who according to two witnesses acted as a lookout for two gunmen.

The suspect is 26 to 30 years old, about five-foot-two to five-foot-five, medium built and with dark complexion.

"One witness said the man even approached Gingoyon before the shooting. So we are not discounting the possibility that he was an accomplice to the crime," said Senior Superintendent Benjarde Mantele, Cavite police chief.

Gingoyon was shot dead by two men riding a motorcycle while walking home after a workout at a nearby gym in Bacoor town on New Year’s eve.

Police are still trying to get descriptions of the gunmen. "We don’t have sketches of the two gunmen yet," Chief Superintendent Jesus Versoza, Calabarzon police director, told a press briefing.

Investigators suspect the killing may be connected to a case that Gingoyon handled, including the ongoing dispute over Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s modern but still mothballed Terminal 3.

NBI deputy director Alejandro Tenerife said his division, the special investigation service, will be included in a task force formed to track down the killers.

Roel Bolivar, head of the NBI’s reaction arrest and interdiction division, said his section will soon release a sketch of one of the suspects based on a description given by witnesses.

Tenerife said the Gingoyon family had asked Supreme Court deputy court administrator Christopher Lock to intercede on their behalf and request for NBI assistance.

"As of now we have no definite suspects yet," he said. "We assure the family that we would not leave any stone unturned."

Gingoyon’s house was shot in the early hours of March 2, 2002 by an automatic rifle.

"I and my entire family were rudely roused from sleep by loud and successive volleys of gunfire. A nephew of my wife who was sleeping at the uppermost floor saw sparks as the bullets hit the portion of the roof of our house," Gingoyon stated in his complaint to the police.

Gingoyon suspected a police officer, who lost in an illegal drugs case, was involved in the shooting.

"I was the judge who heard the case. In my order dismissing the case and acquitting the accused, I did not only put him in bad light, I also suggested that he and his men be stripped of their medal they so undeservedly earned (in arresting the accused)," he stated in his complaint.

The accused was acquitted because of the police officer’s conflicting statements.

Gingoyon’s killing prompted a proposal from Sen. Panfilo Lacson, a former national police chief, that magistrates be allowed to carry firearms. President Arroyo will back measures to increase protection for judges, according to her spokesman, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye, but he was not certain if she would agree to Lacson’s proposal.

"President Arroyo is following this case closely and expects the police to conduct a swift investigation to bring the culprits to justice," Bunye said. "She also supports all effective means to accord protection to judges in the performance of their duty."

Asked if Mrs. Arroyo would agree to proposals to allow judges to carry firearms, he said: "We will await the recommendation of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on that matter."

Lacson said judges are "just like any other Filipinos who should be allowed to carry firearms to protect themselves."

"It’s in the law, (Presidential Decree) 1866, that anybody, provided that they are qualified, may apply for a permit to carry firearms. And unless that PD is amended, they are authorized," he said.

Providing judges with police escorts would only tax the already-undermanned police force.

Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan thought otherwise. "Instead of arming judges, we should dispose swiftly of cases and punish the guilty. This is the best way to protect our judges, criminal elements will think twice before committing crimes if they see that the justice system acts swiftly," he said.

"Crime is rampant because people believe they can get away with it considering how slow the wheels of justice turn in this country," Pangilinan said.

Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban issued a statement yesterday condemning the killing. "I strongly condemn the killing of Judge Gingoyon and I urge the authorities to immediately get to the bottom of it and arrest the perpetrators of this dastardly act and redouble their efforts in solving previously unresolved crimes committed against judges."

He made no comment on Lacson’s proposal but is considering measures to give judges some protection.

"On a longer term basis, we need to give protection before crimes happen and after crimes happened to be sure that perpetrators are brought to justice. We are thinking of a similar solution that the United States has made, it is called the US Marshall system, a special unit of the FBI which is dedicated to solving cases against justices and judges especially cases involving assault on their persons, whether resulting in their death or otherwise" Panganiban said.

Panganiban said he had already designated Associate Justice Cancio Garcia as chairman of a special focus group that would take up the proposed measure.

Lawyer Gleo Guerra, director of the Supreme Court’s public information office and the tribunal chief of staff, said judges who are receiving threats may apply for gun permits with the PNP.

However, only those who pass psychological tests and basic firearms training may be allowed to carry guns.

"There is a committee that is evaluating the application of judges who want to get a permit to carry firearms. After the committee evaluates their applications, they can endorse it to the PNP and it could be approved. And the permit usually lasts for one year," she explained.

Gingoyon was the judge who ordered the government to pay P3 billion to Philippine International Air Terminals Co. (Piatco), the consortium that built the facility.

The government expropriated the facility in December 2004 and the Supreme Court, in a decision last year, allowed the takeover but ordered the government to compensate Piatco.

Pending in Gingoyon’s court is the decision on the amount of compensation to Piatco, which is demanding some $650 million for the almost finished airport.

The government however is insisting only on $380 million and asked Piatco open its books to ensure transparency as to the actual cost of the facility.

Prior to his death, the Supreme Court ordered Gingoyon to form a committee to determine the just compensation to be accorded to Piatco.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the Palace plans to have the terminal opened within the first quarter of the year. — With Arnel Ozaeta, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Paolo Romero, Jose Rodel Clapano, Christina Mendez, Rainier Allan Ronda