2 Valenzuela policemen sentenced to death for killing fellow cop

Two Valenzuela City policemen were sentenced yesterday to die by lethal injection after a Manila City court found them guilty of killing a fellow officer inside a police community precinct in 1996.

The decision, handed down by Branch 11 Judge Luis Arranz, came in the wake of President Arroyo’s pronouncement to grant a reprieve for 21 death convicts. There are now 1,000 inmates on death row. A total of 165 cases have been affirmed by the Supreme Court.

Judge Arranz, in his 46-page decision, ordered the two accused — Senior Police Officer 1 Alfredo Alawig and SPO2 Enrique Dabu — to jointly pay the family of victim PO3 Miel de Ocampo Café, 27, a total of P450,000.

Café is survived by his parents, wife Concepcion and daughter Ellen Mae.

The victim’s mother Perselita, 57, a public school teacher, said the court decision proves "that justice can prevail."

"For nine years, we have worked on the case. Para kaming nabunutan ng tinik," she said.

However, her 60-year-old husband Conrado said he is not truly happy because three other suspects are at large.

Perselita appealed to President Arroyo to lift the moratorium on the death penalty.

"Matagal kaming naghintay. Sana i-grant ang bitay para di na sila pamarisan ng iba," she said, referring to the convicted men.

As for the defense, Dabu’s lawyer Arturo Barias Jr., said that they would file a motion for reconsideration with Branch 11 and, if denied, would elevate the case to the Court of Appeals.

Three other accused — precinct commander SPO4 Ponciano Miraples, PO2 Armando de Vera and PO2 Vivencio Corpuz remain at large.

A sixth suspect, PO3 Romeo Ventinilla, was allegedly involved in a robbery and died during a shootout with policemen in Montalban, Rizal. Café and all of the accused belonged to Police Kababayan Center 1 (PKC 1) in Doña Ata Subdivision, Marulas, Valenzuela.

Alawig was the only suspect present in yesterday’s promulgation. Barias said Dabu failed to appear because he recently had a medical examination and was diagnosed with UTI.

But the prosecution’s private lawyer, Deo de Ocampo, said this was a flimsy excuse and the court would soon issue a warrant of arrest against Dabu. Once apprehended, he would be brought to the New Bilibid Prison.

The three other suspects, once captured, they would undergo a new trial.

The case was originally handled by a judge in Valenzuela City, who only charged them for the crime of homicide, which is bailable.

But petitioner Perselita asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) for a re-investigation of the case and a transfer of venue. Her request was granted and it went to Laguio.

Records showed that in 1996, the victim and the suspects recovered some 15 kilos of shabu from a Taiwanese national. However, upon verification in court, Café was surprised to learn that only 20 grams of the illegal substance was turned over.

The discovery of the irregularity earned for Café the ire of some members of Valenzuela police. Soon after, several unidentified men were constantly following Café.

At noon of Nov. 30, 1996, the five suspects, excluding station commander Miraples, went to the victim’s house and told him to get dressed because they had a an anti-illegal drug operation.

Prosecution witness MacGregor Reyes said he was on his way to Café’s house in Marulas, when he spotted five men outside the residence. He became suspicious and decided to enter the house through the back gate and eavesdrop.

The five policemen, including Café, left the house an hour later.

Reyes later received a telephone call from Café, who told him, "Pare wala pala kaming tratrabahuin. Ako pala ang tratrabahuin, tulungan mo ako, sumundo ka ng tao na tutulong sa akin."

"These utterances are taken as evidence that at that early stage when the victim was brought to the PKC-1, the victim was already in distress and could already foresee his impending death in the hands of those police officers who fetched him including the co-accused Police Precinct Commander Miraples," Arranz said.

Alawig took the witness stand for the defense, saying he knew the victim for two years. He said they were instructed to proceed to the subdivision because of reports of drug pushing in the area. But they later received new instructions and proceeded to Marulas to check on a reported commotion.

When they arrived there, the commotion was over, so they decided to proceed to Café’s house to fetch him.

Upon arriving at the station, Alawig said he saw Café make a telephone call and was later seen having a heated argument with Ventinilla.

Dabu and De Vera, on the other hand, no longer entered the office because they had to respond to an incident in Pasong Balete Hills.

He allegedly saw the victim pointing his Armalite at Ventinilla, who parried the rifle then kicked a table toward Café, causing him to fall on his knees.

Café allegedly fired his rifle once. The suspect returned fire and hit him.

"Unfortunately, Ventinilla is already dead." Thus, his lips are sealed forever and therefore no longer capable to refute or deny the imputations made against him," the court said.

The court found several contradictory statements from the suspects.

There were also signs of alterations in the dispatch logbook and tampering of the evidence at the crime scene to make it look like that the victim became violent, which justified the killing, Arranz said.

Tests showed Café tested negative for powder burns, despite Alawig’s claim that he saw the victim fire his rifle.