Dr. Maximo Reyes, NBI medico-legal chief, contradicted yesterday the initial findings of Dr. Raquel Fortun, forensic pathologist of the University of the Philippines’ College of Medicine.
Fortun hinted that based on the results of her re-autopsy of Santos’ body, there is an indication that the 39-year-old former Marine could have been "silenced" or summarily executed.
The Philippine National Police has maintained that Santos was killed in a 30-minute, pre-dawn encounter with elements of the elite Police Anti-Crime Emergency Response (PACER) at his hideout in General Trias, Cavite.
Fortun said Santos was shot three times: two in the chest, with the bullets exiting in the back, and one in the mouth.
She said the bullet in the mouth pierced Santos’ lower lip and shattered an upper tooth and three lower teeth. The bullet then exited in the back of the neck.
"It appears that he (Santos) was already dying and was already down when he was shot in the mouth. The muzzle was over the lower lip. It was not a distant, random shot as the upper lip should have been damaged. It appears to be the last shot," she said.
Fortun also noted an almost even abrasion margin on the victim’s lower lip, but none on the upper lip. An abrasion margin is the mark left by a bullet entering the body, she said.
She, however, could not categorically say that Santos was really "silenced," saying she needs to wait for the results of an examination on tissue samples taken from Santos’ body. The results are due for release today.
But Reyes said that based on the NBI’s autopsy, Santos could have been shot from a distance of at least 24 inches or two feet.
"There was no mention in our report that it was a contact fire. It was beyond 24 inches," he said.
Reyes’ statements were bolstered by Dr. Renato Bautista, also of the NBI, who was the one who performed the autopsy on Santos’ body.
Bautista said there were no signs of contact fire on Santos’ body such as marks of burning, smudging or tattooing.
Bautista also lashed at Fortun for saying that Santos was shot in the mouth at close range.
"The only controversy here is the mark on the lip. All signs of contact fire are not present, except for a contusion collar on the lower lip. This is to be expected as the lip is a mucous membrane. A bullet would leave such a mark on soft tissue. But it was fired from a distance. All three gunshot wounds did not have signs of close contact fire," he said.
Bautista told reporters that all of Santos’ three gunshot wounds were fatal and all had exited through his body.
The caliber of the gun used in shooting Santos, however, could not be determined because the entry and exit wounds have all been sutured after embalming.
"It is pointless to determine the caliber of the gun used as the entry and exit wounds have been modified by suturing," he said.
The NBI said their autopsy on Santos’ body was also made difficult because Santos’ body was already embalmed.
Santos was also a principal suspect in the murder of police captain Baron Cervantes, self-appointed spokesman of the rightist group Young Officers’ Union on New Year’s Eve in Las Piñas City.