CIDG wants witnesses to face NBI men

CEBU CITY — Does the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) really have a case against the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)?

Last Saturday, a day after filing charges against several NBI operatives and confidential agents in connection with the Dec. 13 botched operation that nearly killed six workers of the Plantation Bay Resort, the CIDG appeared to be taking a step backward.

CIDG chief investigator Enrique Lacerna said he wants the NBI confidential agents in a police line-up so they can be identified by the victims as well as by the witnesses.

"To clear NBI civilian agents (not involved) in the crime, they have to face the witnesses," Lacerna said.

That may prove worrisome to legal experts who know that those accused of a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. That means the burden of proof lies with the prosecution, not the defense, who may not have to prove anything.

The CIDG filed charges of frustrated murder and attempted murder against five regular NBI agents and 14 confidential agents, only two of whom were identified as Paul Lauro and Joey Cal. The rest were John Does.

NBI regional director Romulo Manapsal, who went on leave immediately after the mistaken shooting, was charged as an accessory to the crime.

Lauro is a reporter of ABS-CBN. A reporter from a rival network identified him as among those at the scene of the incident, with a gun in his hand.

The NBI agents were on a stakeout in Mandaue City for a drug supplier riding in a Mitsubishi L-300 van. The workers of Plantation Bay, led by sports manager Michael Monsod, a nephew of former Commission on Elections chairman Christian Monsod, came by in a similar van and were flagged down.

But it was 2 a.m. and those in the van thought they were about to be held up. So the van sped away but the NBI agents gave chase and fired at it.

The van was eventually disabled several miles away in a hail of bullets which witnesses described was a near massacre. Of the six people on board, five were wounded. Police counted a total of 73 bullet holes in the van.

Lacerna said two confidential agents not named in the charges showed up at the CIDG office in an attempt to clear their names.

But he said Ernesto Elizondo Jr. and Rene Junio still need to face the witnesses and the victims to clear their names.

As to the victims, Lacerna said they might need to be provided with police security although they have not received any death threats. He did not say why.

The five regular NBI agents whom the CIDG has charged have been grounded and disarmed. What is not clear is what happened to the confidential agents, most of whom were seen brandishing guns during the fiasco.

The matter about Lauro being a mediaman will be taken up by the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas in its next session in January, according to Cebu chapter president Cynthia Barte.

If Lauro is not an accredited broadcaster with the KBP, Barte said the station which he works for might be investigated.

The Dec. 13 incident has reportedly caught the attention of President Arroyo, who is monitoring developments in the case. It will soon be the subject of a congressional inquiry. — Freeman News Service