Lawyer wants Revilla murder witness charged

MANILA, Philippines - A lawyer for one of the accused middlemen in the Ram Revilla murder case is planning to file a counter charge against one of the witnesses.

Lawyer Gerry Alberto said Sheridan Embat should be charged because he admitted to giving the number of the assassin to kill Revilla.

The alleged gun-for-hire is Roy Francis Tolisora, one of the seven accused in the case. Embat said he gave Tolisora’s number to his fraternity brother, Ryan Pastera, in September 2011.

“He said he was involved in the planning of the murder so he should also be charged. He should have been investigated as a suspect before turning into a witness for the prosecution. Since he himself confirmed that he was an accessory to the crime, an accomplice even, he must also face charges,” said Alberto, who represents Norween dela Cruz, another of Embat’s fraternity brothers.

According to Embat, Pastera told him there are people who wanted to kill Revilla because he “displayed bad behavior, beating people up when he is drunk” and “everyone in the house” knew about the plan.

Embat said Pastera told him that P1 million has been set aside for the job and he would get P200,000.