MANILA, Philippines - Retired major general Jovito Palparan on Monday refused to enter any plea on the kidnapping and serious illegal detention cases before a local court in Malolos, Bulacan.
Consequently, Judge Teodora Gonzalez of the Malolos Regional Trial Court Branch 14 entered a not guilty plea for Palparan during the arraignment.
The court also ruled that Palparan, whom activists and left-leaning groups labeled as the "Butcher," should be detained at the Bulacan Provincial Jail while the cases are being tried.
Palparan's lawyers earlier asked the court to allow the former military official to stay at the National Bureau of Investigation detention facility for security reasons.
They also filed before the court a supplemental motion to detain Palparan at the Armed Forces of the Philippines' detention facility.
The cases stemmed against Palparan from the disappearance of the two University of the Philippines students Karen Empeño and Sheryln Cadapan in 2006.