CA affirms indictment of cops in 2013 Atimonan rubout

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) has upheld the indictment of the police officers involved in the killing of alleged illegal gambling operator Vic Siman and 12 others in Atimonan, Quezon in January 2013.

In a 14-page decision, the eighth division of the appellate court affirmed the Department of Justice (DOJ) resolution approving the filing of multiple murder charges against 14 police officers and dismissed the petition filed by eight of them.

“A finding of grave abuse of discretion, wherein a court or tribunal acted in a capricious, whimsical, arbitrary or despotic manner cannot be sustained,” read the ruling penned by Associate Justice Carmelita Salandanan-Manahan.

The CA held the DOJ was correct in finding that all the elements of the crime of murder were present in this case.

“Here, the elements of murder appear to be present as stated in the respondent DOJ Investigating Panel’s Omnibus Motion – the 13 men died; the killing is not parricide or infanticide; the petitioners and their co-accused conspired and confederated with each other to eliminate the victims; and the killing was attended by the qualifying aggravating circumstances of evident premeditation, taking advantage of superior strength, treachery and with the aid of armed men,” stressed the ruling promulgated last Aug. 24.

Contrary to the claim of the petitioners, the court said they were accorded by the DOJ “a fair and reasonable opportunity to explain their side of the controversy through their participation in the conduct of the preliminary investigation.”

It further pointed out the defenses of the petitioners are evidentiary in nature and therefore, it was best to put the case on trial.

Associate Justices Japar Dimaampao and Franchito Diamante concurred in this ruling.

In September 2013, the DOJ filed cases for 13 counts of murder against former Region IV-A police deputy intelligence head Supt. Hansel Marantan and members of his team before the Gumaca, Quezon regional trial court (RTC).

Apart from Marantan, also named accused in the multiple murder case are Supt. Ramon Balauag, Chief Insp. Grant Gollod, Sr. Insps. John Paolo Carracedo and Timoteo Orig, Sr. Police Officer 3 Joselito de Guzman, SPO 1 Arturo Sarmiento, SPO 1 Carlo Cataquiz, PO 3 Eduardo Oronan, PO2s Nelson Indal and Bhazar Jailani and PO1s Wryan Sardea and PO1 Rodel Talento.