Wife breaks silence, files parricide raps vs mall owner’s son

The wife of a scion of a mall empire broke her silence yesterday and filed frustrated parricide charges against her husband for allegedly shooting her last year in Makati City.

Melissa Mercado-Martel, 43, assisted by her legal counsels from the Calleja Saulog Law Offices, went to the Makati City prosecutor’s office and filed criminal charges against her husband Robert "Roby" Martel whose family owns the Harrison Plaza. He currently sits as a member of the board of directors.

The wife said she has been at the receiving end of her husband’s "mood swings" that allegedly turns him into a violent man.

"My husband is a very violent man and he has hurt many people. He would threaten them," she claimed.

Melissa, who is the daughter of 1960s actor Luis Gonzales, said coming out in public was not an easy decision.

Apart from waiting for more than three months to be released from the hospital, she also had to contemplate on the fate of her three children. The three children are currently with the husband.

"I thought about it, I have kept my silence for so long, but I also have a moral responsibility. Roby should also suffer the consequences for what he has done. I tried to keep the peace in the family, for the sake of my children, and tried to keep things quiet. But I have reached the point that I also have to speak out," the complainant said.

She said that while her husband never hurt the children, she had to take legal action. "What example would I be to my children if I allow their father to hurt me."

Her counsel Lourdes Cruz Matters said they would soon file for an annulment.

"We wanted to show to all the people that a husband should not hurt his wife because that is not right. Women should fight for their rights because these situations happen to people whether they are rich or poor," the lawyer said.

Melissa and Roby were married in civil rites in 1984 and in church in 1987.

Shooting at the Ritz

In her four-page affidavit, Melissa said the shooting took place at around 2 p.m. of Aug. 26, 2003 inside their unit at the Ritz Towers on Ayala Avenue.

She was watching television inside her 23-year-old son’s room when Roby allegedly attacked and strangled her.

"He then dragged me to the bed, pinned me down and beat me up," she said.

When Melissa attempted to defend herself, Roby allegedly pulled her hair, causing her to fall to the kitchen floor. It was then that her 16-year-old daughter and one of Roby’s bodyguards, Joel Castillo, arrived.

Roby then ordered Castillo to bring his wife into their bedroom and grabbed a caliber .38 revolver that was allegedly given to him by security guard Fidel Nimes.

The husband slowly walked to her with the pistol on his side and shouted incentives. "Who the hell do you think you are?" he shouted at her.

"He then wrapped his left arm around me, held up the gun, pointed it close to my abdomen, pulled the trigger and shot me," she said.

Stunned and bleeding, Melissa asked Castillo to help her escape. The bodyguard led her down the emergency stairway. "I heard Roby shouting at Castillo, "P—mo , Castillo! mamili ka, pera ko o buhay niya! Castillo replied, Buhay po, sir."

She was rushed to the Makati Medical Center for treatment and was confined for three and a half months.

She learned that her husband went to the US after the shooting incident, but returned to the country last December.