By BOY RYAN B. ZABAL
KALIBO, Aklan — Four Buruanga police station personnel accused of shooting to death a local official’s bodyguard were insisting innocence.
SPO2 Rizaldy Tang, PO3 Jackson Jauod, and PO1s Vincent Jauod and Victor Elisan claimed that the death of Roderick Baco was a repercussion of a “legitimate police operation.”
In its pre-charge evaluation report, the Aklan police’s Internal Affairs Service (IAS) recommended the filing of grave misconduct charges against the four policemen.
Baco’s wife, Eufemia, earlier filed an administrative complaint against the policemen.
In the complaint Euphemia stated that the policemen “conspired with treachery and, with the use of high-powered firearms, with intent to kill, fired their guns and shot to death” Baco.
The incident happened at about 11:30 p.m. on November 24 last year in Sitio Otbong, Barangay Poblacion, Buruanga.
Baco, his brother Ronil Baco, and their friends Taling Biadora and Antonio Santos Jr. were drinking in the couple’s house in Sitio Otbong from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. on November 24.
At about 11 p.m., Baco informed his wife that he will accompany Biadora, the last one among the other three to go home, on the road.
Eufemia said her husband was not yet around when, between 11:30 p.m. and 11:45 p.m., she heard what seemed to be successive bursts of gunshot from nearby.
She did not mind the sound. She slept, expecting her husband to return home later.
The following day, Kalibo policemen came to their house to tell her that her husband had died.
Eufemia later learned that the four Buruanga policemen were allegedly behind Baco’s death.
According to the accused, they only went to the sitio to respond to a complaint regarding alarm and scandal.
It was learned that the responding Buruanga policemen later got involved in a shootout where Baco was killed.
“We are innocent,” the policemen said. “We will face the criminal and administrative charges against us.”
They said they have recovered firearms from Baco at the time of the incident.
PO3 Pelegrino Palomar Jr., IAS pre-charge evaluator, said the Buruanga policemen violated Rule 21, Paragraph C, Subparagraph 3 of the Philippine National Police (PNP) manual.
The violation is punishable under the Revised Penal Code or the Special Laws of the National Police Commission Circular 2007–001, Palomar said.
Grave misconduct, considered a grave offense in the PNP manual, is punishable by 60 days to six months of suspension, one-rank demotion, or dismissal from service.
The provincial IAS concluded the administrative hearing on the complaint on Monday. Its recommendation will be reviewed by the regional IAS. (Aklan Forum Journal/PN)
