Police file murder raps vs. "Cop Killers"

CEBU, Philippines - The police the other day filed a murder complaint against suspects in the killing of PO1 William Mangubat Jr. in the Talisay City prosecutor's office.

As of press time however, brothers Lito and Jundy Oros and Noel Simbajon alias Noel Pacaña were still at large.

With the filing of the complaint, Senior Inspector Errol Francis Deveyra, acting chief of the Talisay City Police Station, said pursuit of the three men has been stopped.

They will now have to wait for the court to release a warrant of arrest before they would again chase the men.

Witnesses, who all executed affidavits attached to the complaint, point to the three men as responsible for the killing of rookie cop Mangubat.

Mangubat sustained a shot in the head and another on the shoulder last March 11 while chasing men who had just robbed passengers of a multicab.

According to the witnesses, after divesting the passengers of their valuables, the two suspects, reportedly Jundy and Simbajon, one of them armed with a handgun, alighted from the south-bound multicab in sitio Mananga before the vehicle could cross the Mananga Bridge.

Mangubat, who at that time was patrolling the area together with another rookie cop, heard a call for help from one of the victims.

Without a word, Mangubat ran towards the direction where the suspects had fled.

During the chase, which reached the interiors of sitio Mananga 2, known for being a haven for criminals, Mangubat was shot dead.

Based on witnesses' accounts, Lito saw his brother being chased by the police and tried to come to his rescue.

The three suspects reportedly waited at a corner in densely populated sitio Mananga 2 for Mangubat to emerge, and when he did, one of them allegedly shot him.

Meanwhile, the Talisay City is set to give a P100,000 bounty for whoever can give information that will lead to the arrest of the suspects.