'Padilla fired at police team'

MANILA, Philippines – National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Leocadio Santiago insisted yesterday that slain carjack gang leader Ivan Padilla fired his gun at policemen out to arrest him in Makati City.

“He (Padilla) fired his gun, and that’s for sure. We even recovered several empty shells in the area of the encounter,” said Santiago in an interview.

The NCRPO chief noted that Padilla yielded a .38 caliber revolver, a .22 caliber revolver and a hand grenade.

His companion, Mark Inducil, initially admitted that Padilla opened fire with his .22 caliber revolver at NCRPO operatives during a five-minute gunbattle in Makati City.

Inducil was arrested after the brief gunbattle.

Santiago issued his reaction following findings of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) that Padilla was found negative of powder burns. He reserved comment on the issue as he ordered an investigation to determine how the SOCO teams were able to conduct their paraffin tests on Padilla.

“I could not say whether the SOCO findings is conclusive or inconclusive as I have not received a copy of their report as yet,” said Santiago.

“I wanted to know first how the SOCO team conducted their paraffin tests whether it’s in the emergency room of the hospital where his hands may have been swabbed by alcohol, in the morgue or in the funeral homes.”

During the shootout, the Toyota Fortuner owned by Superintendent Maristelo Manalo, head of the anti-carnapping unit of the NCRPO had bullet holes in the windshield and hood.

According to Santiago, he could not elaborate fully on the Padilla case as all the evidence gathered at the crime scene were forwarded immediately to the custody of the Internal Affairs Service (IAS) of the Philippine National Police.

“The IAS immediately got hold of all evidence as I asked them to investigate the shooting incident amid accusations of his mother and relatives that Padilla was summarily executed,” said Santiago in an interview.

The IAS and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) are separately conducting investigation into the death of Padilla.

The NCRPO traced Padilla while he and his companions were attempting to sell July 29 a Toyota Camry owned by former Foreign Affairs secretary Roberto Romulo in Filinvest, Quezon City. A shootout ensued between Manalo’s team and Padilla, who managed to escape on board another Camry, which the gang took at gunpoint in Makati City from the driver of the vice president of Toshiba Philippines.