Ex-S. Cotabato town mayor acquitted of murder

MANILA, Philippines - The former mayor of Tampakan, South Cotabato has been acquitted of the murder of a mayoralty candidate in 2004.

In a 50-page decision, Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 6 Judge Jansen Rodriguez found no sufficient evidence linking former mayor Bienvenido Barroso to the ambush of Gregorio Banal on July 28, 2004.

Barroso's co-accused, Rudy Mangilay, was sentenced to a maximum of 40 years imprisonment and ordered to pay more than P1 million in damages to the Banal family.

Lucas Carpio Jr., Barroso’s lawyer, said they would file an appeal for Mangilay.

Records show that three men on a motorcycle peppered Banal with bullets while the latter was in his jeep parked along Kamagong street in Tampakan.

Banal ran for Tampakan mayor under the banner of the Lakas-CMD. He lost to Bienvenido’s father, Claudio.

Wahabin Samya Pasague, the gunman who turned state witness, identified Bienvenido and his brother Henry as the masterminds.

Henry and eight other suspects, including members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front under Jack Andatuan, remain at large.