Fiscal junks libel raps vs Caparas

MANILA, Philippines - The Quezon City prosecutor’s office has dismissed a libel case filed by detained policeman Rizal Alih against movie director Carlo Caparas and his wife, Donna Villa, over a movie released in 1991.

In a two-page resolution, Assistant City Prosecutor Reuben Veradio said there is no probable cause to file charges against the respondents since the Revised Penal Code only allows the filing of libel charges within one year after the publication or release of the alleged libelous material. The prosecutor noted that the case was filed in September 2012, more than two decades since the release of the movie “Arrest Patrolman Alih – Zamboanga Massacre.”

The film was about the 1989 siege of Camp Cawa-Cawa in Zamboanga, which led to the death of Brig. Gen. Eduardo Batalla. Alih, in his complaint, said the movie depicted him as the one who beheaded Batalla, whose death certificate stated he died of a heart attack.

Alih said he had been hiding in Malaysia until his arrest in 2006 and only discovered the film in 2011.