Picar family faces murder raps

Murder and frustrated murder charges will be filed against five members of the Picar family in connection with the killing of former child actress Anouk "Strawberry" Baldo in Las Piñas City last year.

To be named as principal respondents in Strawberry’s murder are couple Reynaldo and Corazon Picar, their children Ronald, Mark Ryan, Glenn and Lulette Rogers.

Aside from this, Strawberry’s boyfriend June Mark Doromal and security guard Marfie Arabani, are also filing frustrated murder charges against the Picars and Rogers.

Rogers, police investigators uncovered, played a key role in intercepting Doromal and Strawberry by blocking the lovers’ car along Elizalde street, UBFHAI Village, Las Piñas City at about 4:30 a.m. on Dec. 18.

Director Nestorio Gualberto, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), said they based their findings on testimonies taken from independent witnesses that the Picars were the aggressors and Doromal and Strawberry were the victims in this case.

"Aside from testimonies of independent witnesses, our investigation is also supported by scientific findings which showed that Strawberry was hit in the back of her head, contrary to claims that Doromal, who was in front of her, fired the fatal shot," Gualberto said.

The Picars and several of their witnesses claimed that it was Doromal and his phalanx of security guards who killed Strawberry. "But entry and exit points of the fatal slug showed the killer bullet came from the position of the Picars," Gualberto said.

A separate case, arising from Strawberry’s death, for attempted murder has been filed by the Picar matriarch Corazon, last Dec. 20, against Doromal in the Office of the Las Piñas Prosecutor.

But Gualberto said that the filing of charges against Doromal could just be a ploy of the Picars to influence an impartial investigation of the case.

"In our own analysis, we also uncovered that Strawberry’s killing stemmed from a mere traffic altercation inside the village between Doromal and the Picars."

Meanwhile, the mother of Strawberry said she was "satisfied" with the decision of the CIDG to file murder charges against members of the Picar family.

"Pati kami na-issue kung bakit okay sa amin mabagal ang imbestigasyon. Gusto kasi namin, kahit matagalan, basta yung tunay na suspect ang makasuhan," Rosanne Sumayao, Strawberry’s mother, said in a telephone interview.

According to Sumayao, the CIDG discussed with their family information about the case, where she believed that the Picars were liable for her 25-year-old daughter’s death.

"We’re convinced by the CIDG’s explanation based on the evidence they gathered. It was the Picars who really did it," Sumayao said.

Chief Supt. Jose Gutierrez, Southern Police District Office (SPDO) commander, said he supports the decision of the CIDG. "We argued the case during the conferences that we had. But that was the decision and we abide by that," Gutierrez said.

The Las Piñas police, under Gutierrez’s command, had pointed to Mark Doromal, Strawberry’s boyfriend, and his bodyguards as the suspects in the crime.

Gutierrez and the Las Piñas police had banked on the testimonies of at least six witnesses. The testimonies were earlier described by Gutierrez as their "strong evidence" against Doromal.

The CIDG, the Las Piñas police, and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) conducted parallel investigations into the case.

Despite the apparent conflict in the results of the investigations conducted by the CIDG and the Las Piñas police, Gutierrez guaranteed that there was no whitewash of the case.

Last month, a group claiming to be composed of "concerned family and friends of Strawberry," sent a letter to DOJ Secretary Hernando Perez and expressed their fear of a whitewash.

But Sumayao and her estranged husband, TV executive Oscar Baldo, denied having endorsed the letter.

The group questioned the presence of retired police General Mariano Filart in the case conferences and feared a possible whitewash.

But Sumayao said she had personally asked Filart, whom she had described as a "close family friend," as well as Quezon City Rep. Maite Defensor, to help ensure a proper investigation. Strawberry was a part of Defensor’s staff in the House of Representatives at the time of her death. – Jaime Laude and Nikko Dizon