QCPD readies charges vs suspects in death of houseboy

MANILA, Philippines - The Quezon City Police District is preparing criminal charges against three persons, including an identified teenager, said to be member of a group of young men behind the killing of a drunken helper on Sunday in Barangay Payatas.

The identified 17-year-old suspect and two others named only through their aliases belong to the so-called “Banal Group” that is also believed to be the ones who staged a robbery at a wedding reception last week in the same village and killed the groom’s father.

Superintendent Ronnie Montejo, commander of the QCPD-Station 6, said they were eyeing murder or homicide charges against the three, particularly the 17-year-old boy.

According to Montejo, a witness has pointed to the three to be the ones who ganged up on Remos Bantiling on Sunday night.

Montejo said they are taking into consideration the fact that the suspects are of minor age, but he said they would be leaving it up to the discretion of the fiscal.

The band of teenagers is said to have been sowing terror in the area, perpetrating criminal activities and thinking they are “untouchable.”

“Their activities are mostly robberies, particularly of cellular phones. They would sell their loot to finance their illegal drug use,” Montejo said in an interview.

It turned out that the said group has been in existence for decades, with its present composition already third generation members.

“The original members have either died or reformed themselves,” Montejo said.

But other teenagers there have apparently followed the footsteps of their equally rowdy predecessors, still keeping the name of the group.

Before his death, Bantiling had been drinking liquor when he happened to pass by a group of teenagers. For still unknown reason, the teenagers ganged up on him and stabbed him in the chest.

Bantiling managed to get to the house of a relative before eventually collapsing.

At past midnight on Friday last week, a group of teenagers barged into a wedding party and declared a heist.

A commotion happened after the father of the groom attempted to fight off the suspects. The suspects killed the victim before taking off with a cellular phone of the bride.