Police has strong case against 161 in Maguindanao massacre

MANILA, Philippines - Police believe they have a strong case against 161 people suspected of killing 57 civilians in cold blood in Maguindanao last Nov. 23.

Police are offering a reward for any information that would lead to the arrest of the suspects.

Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. of Datu Unsay, Maguindanao and 61 others were charged yesterday with 57 counts of murder before the Department of Justice based on the testimonies of 10 witnesses, among them Senior Police Officer 2 Rainer Tan Ebus; Chief Inspector Sukarno Dicay, Maguindanao police deputy chief; and Inspector Rex Diongon, 1508th Provincial Mobile Group commander.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Jesus Verzosa said investigators continue to gather evidence to build up the murder case against five members of the Ampatuan clan and the other suspected killers.

“We would like to assure the public, our friends from the media, that the government, the PNP and the AFP, are doing our best and we will exhaust all our resources to resolve this barbaric act and all the perpetrators will be brought to justice,” he said.

Senior Superintendent Ericson Velasquez, Maguindanao massacre chief investigator, said two of 11 witnesses under police protection have identified Ampatuan Jr. as the leader of about 100 armed men who snatched the 57 victims after stopping them at a police checkpoint along the national highway in Ampatuan town.

“Their testimonies show that there was a plan to abduct the group of Mangudadatu,” he said.

“The witnesses also claim that they also conducted a checkpoint because they believe that Mangudadatu will be filing his certificate of candidacy on the 20th (of November).

“That is why they were able to place all their forces along the stretch of the national highway in order to make sure that the group of Mangudadatus will be checked.”

Ebus told police investigators Ampatuan Jr. made sure that all the victims were dead.

“Ebus claimed that while the victims were lying down, they were shot in the mouth, in the chest and he also confirmed the results of the PNP laboratory that there was tattooing,” Velasquez said.

Ebus also told police Ampatuan Jr. had ordered that all the victims be killed, and inspected the victims’ bodies after they were shot and shot them again if they showed any signs of life.

Velasquez said militiaman Takpan Dilon, who was assigned at the house of Vice Mayor Datu Rasul Sangki of Ampatuan town, corroborated the statement of Ebus, which was taken in the presence of his wife, Mellany, while that of Dilon was taken before his counsel Marlon Pagaduan, according to Velasquez.

Ebus tells how the victims were killed

The 31 journalists and some other victims were told to line up to witness the shooting of the family members of Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu before they themselves were shot dead.

The Mangudadatu women jumped out of their vehicle and joined the other victims to try to escape, but Ampatuan Jr. and his militiamen shot them.

Ampatuan Jr. finished off those who were still breathing with shots from his baby armalite.

His men also shot the victims at close range in the mouth, chest, head and other parts of the body.

Ebus: Ampatuan Jr. readied police vs Mangudadatu convoy

Ampatuan Jr. had placed police on alert since Nov. 19 following reports that Vice Mayor Mangudadatu would file his certificate of candidacy for governor at the Commission on Elections office in the provincial capitol.

Ebus was in the security barracks at Ampatuan Jr.’s compound in Shariff Aguak, capital of Maguindanao, on Nov. 19 when told that they had to leave to inspect the checkpoint manned by militiamen at an intersection.

Joining him in the barracks were Police Officer 1 Abbey Guiadem, Datu Unsay police station officer-in-charge; Police Officers 1 Musa Ibad, Joharto Kamindan; Datu Nor Kadir, and Jonathan Engid; and Army soldiers Abdul Abdullah, Abdulkarim Falcon, Alnor Ampatuan, Benzar Maulana and a certain Master Sergeant Andrada.

Abdullah is assigned to the 64th Infantry Brigade; Falcon and Maulana at the 150th IB; Ampatuan at the 57th IB and Andrada at the 75th IB.

The convoy left at 8 a.m. on board six vehicles - three police vehicles, a black Toyota Revo, a black Toyota Hi-Lux-VIGO occupied by Ampatuan Jr., and a Hummer mounted with a caliber 50 machinegun.

At the checkpoint, the group of Ampatuan Jr. waited for the convoy of the Mangudadatus.

They returned to the area at 3 p.m. and left at 5:30 p.m. for Ampatuan’s house after the Mangudadatu convoy failed to arrive.

For the next three days the same routine was followed but the Mangudadatu convoy did not pass the checkpoint.

It was on the morning of Nov. 23 when they were told that Vice Mayor Mangudadatu would file his certificate of candidacy before the Comelec.

Ebus and the party of Ampatuan Jr. had breakfast at the Tweeny Restaurant in Shariff Aguak before proceeding to the checkpoint on board two marked police vehicles, an Isuzu D-Max, a black Toyota Revo, a black Toyota Hi-lux-VIGO occupied by Ampatuan Jr. and the Hummer.

Several minutes later, other vehicles occupied by the nephews of Ampatuan Jr. – Datu Ulo, Datu Ipi, Datu Harris and Datu Moning – accompanied by heavily armed civilian volunteers arrived.

Two hours later, he saw six vehicles, including a Tamaraw FX, a red Toyota Vios with a sticker “Bubuwit” at the back window, and three vans arrive at the checkpoint manned by Dicay and Diongon.

Ampatuan Jr. talked to somebody on his cell phone before they ran towards their waiting vehicle and proceeded to the checkpoint.

A police armored car was positioned in the middle of the street to prevent vehicles coming from Isulan town from proceeding to the area.

Ampatuan Jr., his escort Police Officers 1 Engid and Falcon started hitting members of the Mangudadatu convoy, some of whom were already standing in the streets, with the butt of their firearms.

Ampatuan Jr. and his escorts then inspected Mangudadatu’s vehicles and confiscated all documents found inside.

Ampatuan Jr. then ordered his men to board Mangudadatu’s vehicles and directed them to drive straight to the secluded barangay in Ampatuan town.

When they reached Barangay Salman, the journalists and convoy members were lined up, while Ampatuan Jr. told his men that he alone would open fire at the Mangudadatu family members.

Ampatuan Jr. used his baby armalite with a mounted M203 grenade launcher to shoot the Mangudadatu women.

The gun jammed and Ampatuan Jr. replaced it with a K3.

Vice Mayor Kanor Ampatuan of Pagatin town joined Ampatuan Jr. in firing at the Mangudadatu family.

When others in the convoy saw the Ampatuans shooting at the Mangudadatus, they, including some of the journalists, jumped out of their vehicles to escape but the civilian volunteers of Ampatuan Jr. gunned them down.

After witnessing the killings, Ebus said he hid behind a vehicle for fear that he would be the next target.

Ampatuan Jr. and Mayor Bahnarin Ampatuan of Mamasapano town left on board their vehicles, leaving behind Kanor to deal with the bodies.

A backhoe arrived and Kanor supervised the “burial” of the victims.

Police Officer 1 Ibad and two civilian volunteers left for their barracks in Shariff Aguak.

Between 2:30 and 3 p.m. Guiadem called up and ordered Ebus and his companions to proceed to a certain area in Shariff Aguak where Datu Unsay police OIC Kadir and Army soldiers Ampatuan and Abdullah were waiting.

At 10 p.m., Ebus saw Ampatuan Jr., accompanied by Police Officers 1 Engid and Kamendan, who told his group “to part ways for a while.”

“Kanya-kanya lang daw muna kami at ‘wag magkita-kita (Go our separate ways for now and don’t meet together).”

From Nov. 24 to 26, Ebus stayed in his barracks at Ampatuan Jr.’s compound in Shariff Aguak before he placed himself under the custody of his superior officer at ARMM police.

More firearms, explosives recovered

Another cache of high-powered firearms and explosives was recovered inside the compound of the Ampatuans in Cotabato City.

Chief Superintendent Felicisimo Khu Jr., Joint Task Force commander, told The STAR nine M-16 riffles, five M-203 grenade launchers, five M-14 riffles, one M-60 and thousands of ammunitions were unearthed yesterday afternoon in a septic tank at the 32-hectare Ampatuan compound in Governor Gutierrez Avenue.

The firearms are believed to belong to civilian volunteers headed by a certain Macapagal Kamendan, chief of the security force of the Ampatuans, he added.

“There are now police and Army agents running after this Mr. Kamendan who was last seen leaving, along with his men, the compound carrying several big bags last week,” he said.

Army and police intelligence sources said there have been persistent feedback from concerned citizens that Kamendan and Senior Inspector Saudi Mokamad, one of the suspects in the Maguindanao massacre, are both keepers of about a hundred firearms used in the carnage.

Khu said a logbook containing the names of 29 civilian volunteers of the Ampatuans was also found at the scene.

“We are now trying to hunt down those people especially Kamendan, and we are looking at the possibility that they may have had something to do with the Nov. 23 Maguindanao massacre,” he said.

In Maguindanao, troops recovered some P500,000 worth of live mortar rounds and shoulder-fired 57 and 90 RR projectiles that can stop tanks and armored personnel carriers inside a warehouse belonging to the Ampatuans in Shariff Aguak.   – With Non Alquitran, Mike Frialde, John Unson, Rose Tamayo-Tesoro, Jess Diaz