3 meted life for slay of 'Asin' band leader

KORONADAL, South Cotabato - A lawyer and his two aides were each sentenced to life imprisonment yesterday for the 1993 murder of Asin band leader Cesar "Saro" Bañares Jr., ending a seven-year celebrated case.

In his 58-page decision, Judge Jose Majaducon found lawyer Gualberto Cataluña and brothers Joelito and Joel Castracion guilty beyond reasonable doubt of conspiring in the killing of Bañares inside a KTV bar on March 18, 1993.

Majaducon ruled that the three accused "acted, conspired and confederated with one another with an intent to kill, evident premeditation and abuse of superior strength and number" in mauling and fatally shooting Bañares.

Majaducon ordered the three convicts to pay Bañares' family P200,000 in total damages, P500,000 in moral damages, P300,000 for income loss, P50,000 for death indemnity, and the cost of the suit.

The judgment was handed down at noon yesterday at the fully packed Branch 24 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC).

The crowd, mostly relatives and avid fans of Bañares, shouted "God is a God of justice" as the convicts were led out of the courtroom.

Cataluña, clad in a maroon barong, calmly accepted the verdict and even immediately offered his hands to be handcuffed.

In an interview with The STAR before the promulgation, Cataluña still insisted on his innocence, but said he would accept the court's verdict.

"I have already accepted my fate and I'm leaving all these to the Lord," said the convicted 40-year-old lawyer and licensed electrical engineer.

"Other lawyers did not experience this, but I can say that I spent the best seven years and two months of my life while in jail," he added.

Judge Majaducon ordered the transfer of the convicts to the National Penitentiary in Muntinlupa City within 15 days, but Cataluña's lawyers, led by Ernesto Catedral, said they would appeal the verdict with the Supreme Court.

According to court records, on March 18, 1993, customers of the Vision KTV Karaoke located along General Santos Drive in Koronadal town were enjoying the evening with songs, food and drinks when a "fistfight" erupted at about 9 p.m.

The fight, involving several customers, went on for several minutes, after which a single gunshot was heard. Bañares lay bloodied with a gunshot wound in the forehead. He was rushed to the hospital, but died later.

Witnesses presented by the prosecution recounted that before Bañares was shot, Cataluña and the Castracion brothers "mauled, boxed and kicked him" over a certain misunderstanding.

Cataluña allegedly started the attack by throwing a beer bottle that hit Bañares on the forehead.

While the fight was going on, Cataluña moved back and secretly passed a handgun, which turned out to be unlicensed, to Joelito Castracion who approached and shot Bañares.

The three accused immediately fled after the incident. Several days later, they separately surrendered to authorities and were subsequently charged with murder.

On Aug. 2, 1993, the court issued an order denying a petition for grant of bail. The defense appealed the decision with the Court of Appeals which denied it. The case was elevated to the Supreme Court which also junked the appeal.

But when the court was about to resume trial, then Presiding Judge Rodolfo Soledad died. The late Judge Francisco Ampig Jr., then presiding judge of Branch 25, was assigned to handle the case, but asked to be inhibited which the Supreme Court granted.

On April 3 last year, the Supreme Court designated Judge Majaducon, the executive judge of the General Santos City RTC, to take over the celebrated case. He began trial in September last year and completed it within a month.