CA clears Balikatan troops in Pinoy interpreter's death

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) has cleared the former Arroyo administration and Philippine and US military officers in the death of a Filipino interpreter in an Army camp in Marawi City where Balikatan exercises were being held in February last year.

In a 16-page ruling, the appellate court dismissed the petition of the family of Gregan Cardeño seeking to hold former President, now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, officials of the Visiting Forces Agreement Commission and US Joint Special Operations Task Force Philippines for the death that they alleged was a case of murder.

The CA upheld findings of investigators that Cardeño committed suicide and that he was not killed by any of the soldiers in the camp.

It cited an autopsy report of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Zamboanga City showing that Cardeño’s death was caused by asphyxia (choking) by hanging and not by any external injury, which would have indicted foul play.

“There is nothing in the recorded evidence which would attribute specific acts or omissions to the respondents as having a hand in the alleged cover-up. What is rather apparent herein, with respect to Cardeño’s death are the findings by the investigating officers… that it was an act of suicide, thereby ruling out the possibility of ‘foul play’,” it added.

The CA said the allegation of the Cardeño family “lacks material details to sustain their cause of action.”

It recounted that during the hearing on the petition on Feb. 1, 2010, the petitioners were directed to submit a detailed specification of the facts of the case duly supported by evidence.

The petitioners, the court said, failed to comply with this directive.

The CA noted that the document submitted by the petitioners as evidence only contained a recital of events leading to the deaths of Gregan and Army Maj. Javier Ignacio which it said was insufficient to convince the court that the respondents were indeed responsible for the alleged violation of their rights.

Also cleared in the CA ruling were former Armed Forces Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino, Gen. Aldo, Col. Felix Castro, Capt. Boyer, M/Sgt. Gines, Capt. Michael Kay, Lt. JG Theresa Donnely, SP03 Ali Guibon Rangiris, SPO3 Mayaman Nao Angintaopan, Tomas Rivera III, Skylink, Unit 2 of the Western Mindanao Command, P0 Mago, and former police Director General Jesus Verzosa.

In their petition for writs of amparo and habeas data, the Cardeños alleged that there was a cover-up as to the real cause of Cardeño’s death and that they have been receiving threats and are under military surveillance because of their efforts to dig deeper into the case.

Cardeño was hired as a contractual employee through a local security agency to work as an interpreter for US soldiers.

Cardeño was reportedly fluent in different local dialects, like Tausug and Bisaya, and even Bahasa of Indonesia. He was found dead on Feb. 2, 2010 in his room at the Joint Special Operations Task Force of the Philippines headquarters in Marawi City.