'Life' for 6 cops, 2 guards who hanged man in NAIA

It was murder, nothing else.

A Pasay City Judge sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday six policemen and two security guards who killed a man by hanging at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) two years ago.

In a 10-page, handwritten decision, Judge Lilia Lopez said she found police corporals Neil Baluyot, Richard delos Trino, Herminio Jose, Marcelo Bustamante, Edwin Soriano, Carlito Lingat and security guards Elmer Salvador and Abdulajib Mutalib guilty of killing Romeleo Quintos early June of 1997.

She sentenced the eight to serve 20 to 35 years in prison and ordered each to pay P60,000 to the victim's heirs.

Quintos, 30, of 1326 Magnolia st., Gate 2, Villamor Air Base used to be employed at the Institutional Products Corp. The day he was killed, he was supposed to fetch his brother Rolando, a balikbayan seaman, at the NAIA.

While parking his Tamarax FX vehicle at the airport at around 12:15 of June 1, two policemen -- Soriano and Jose -- approached him and told him that he was in a no-loading/unloading area. A heated argument between him and the lawmen ensued, and Quintos ended up being arrested and detained.

At around 3 a.m. the next morning he was found already dead.

Quintos' body was discovered hanging from the iron grills of one of the detention centers of the airport police's Intelligence and Investigation Division.

A nylon cord tied to the iron grills served as the noose around his neck. His death was initially reported as a suicide.

Judge Lopez took credence of the account of witness Noel Gaborne who was detained with Quintos. Gaborne said Quintos, who was fuming mad at the policemen for his arrest, was punched several times in the stomach by the lawmen.

It was the last time he saw Quintos alive, Gaborne said.

The judge also noted that it was impossible for Quintos or anyone to hang himself inside the detention cell as the iron grills in its windows were too low.

She considered as well the earlier testimony of one of the guards who revealed that he heard one of the policemen tell the group, "Tapusin na natin yan (Let's finish him off)."

During the trial, the guard said he saw Quintos trying to reach one of the policeman with his right hand while he was being hanged. After they had killed the victim, the same policeman allegedly instructed the guard to keep mum on the case.

"Kung ano man ang nakita at narinig mo, huwag mo nang ilabas (Do not devulge what you saw and heard)," he was allegedly told.