MANILA, Philippines - The Navy men implicated in the death of Ensign Philip Pestaño in 1995 yesterday called on the Office of the Ombudsman to dismiss the case against them for lack of jurisdiction as they maintain their innocence in the crime.
The lawyer of Capt. Ricardo Ordoñez and Chief Petty Officer Carlito Amoroso urged Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales to speed up resolution of the case.
“We are calling on Ombudsman Morales to immediately dismiss the case,” said lawyer Ana Luz Cristal during a press conference.
She added that the case should have been resolved by the Ombudsman.
“We want this case to end. We do not want a dismissal, we want an acquittal,” Cristal said.
She said the Ombudsman has yet to resolve their motion to quash the information for lack of jurisdiction, considering the rank of the Navy personnel involved and the fact that the case was murder while the Ombudsman is mandated to investigate cases related to graft and corruption.
Ordoñez said he could not kill anyone. “I have been lay minister since 1997. Hindi ko magagawa ang pumatay (I am not capable of killing). I am the number one in my class in naval course,” Ordoñez said. He was lieutenant commander in 1995 and retired in 2005.
Amoroso, tagged as the gunman of Pestaño, maintained that he did not know the victim personally. He said he was not aboard the ship at the time of Pestaño’s death since he was at the Naval Intelligence and Security office when the incident allegedly took place.
Cristal pointed out that the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan have no jurisdiction on the case of Pestaño.
“Under the rules, the Sandiganbayan only has jurisdiction if the accused is navy captain or full colonel. It is very clear that the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction or has committed a mistake,” the lawyer said.
The legal counsel added that trial should be heard in a military tribunal because the alleged crime was committed in a Navy ship and could involve “national security matters.”
“Maraming lapses, maraming error. Nakakahiya man sabihin, hindi na error ito, gross ignorance of the law and disrespect of the law ito,” Cristal said. “Walang murder dito. Suicide po ito na maliwanag (There were many lapses and errors. It’s embarrassing to admit, but this is already gross ignorance of the law. It was not murder, but suicide).”