Murder raps filed vs killers of broadcaster Sestoso

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines — Murder charges have been filed against the motorcycle-riding gunmen who shot radio broadcaster Edmund Sestoso to death on April 30.

Lourdes Sestoso, wife of the slain 50-year-old broadcaster, appeared before the City Prosecution Office yesterday afternoon to file the complaint against John and Peter Doe, also known as "Mokong" and "Sherwin."

"Dako kong pasalamat jud nga naa na juy kahayag aron makuha ang hustisya alang sa akong bana. Di ko kasabot sa akong gibati karon, murag naay gamay’ng kakulba," Lourdes told reporters immediately after filing the complaint.

She also appealed to "Mokong" and "Sherwin," — who in the witnesses' affidavits indicated to be from Guihulngan City — to surface so they can shed light into the killing of her husband.

"Ngano man intawon inyong gipatay ang akung bana? Kabut-an ra man intawon ato. Akong mga anak intawon ron makalooy kaayo, sige na lang og hilak magabii, magbulong sa ilang amahan," she added, fighting back tears.

Edmund Sestoso was shot by "riding-in-tandem" gunmen near his boarding house at Barangay Daro in Dumaguete City on April 30, after doing his daily morning news and public affairs program "Tug-anan sa Power 91" over dyGB 91.7 FM. He succumbed to his injuries in the afternoon of the following day (May 1).

The complaint was supposed to be filed as soon as the city's Hall of Justice opened, but was held back by a few hours because one of the murder's three witnesses only filed his sworn statement later yesterday morning.

The witness, whose name The Freeman is withholding for security reasons, only appeared to subscribe his affidavit after he was convinced multiple times by the police.

According to his statement, Sestoso was shot right after he alighted the tricycle he was on; he was already bleeding by then. A man wearing a maroon shirt then got off a black motorcycle and approached the bullet-ridden Sestoso, and fired more shots at the latter in different parts of the body.

The witness then helped Sestoso, who he carried onto a yellow tricycle because one of the tires of the tricycle the victim was riding got flat. He and other concerned citizens carried Sestoso into the other tricycle and rushed the wounded broadcaster into the nearby Silliman University Medical Center.

Another key witness also filed an additional sworn statement yesterday afternoon, saying he only added details of the shooting incident that he overlooked in his original statement.

Now that the complaint is filed, it will be consolidated along with the sworn testimonies of the case's three main witnesses. Once docketed, it will be subject to preliminary investigation, assistant city prosecutor Angela Charina Cortes-Garces told reporters, adding that the case will go through a "long process."

For his part, Dumaguete Press Club president and The Freeman correspondent Juancho Gallarde said he is happy that the Sestoso murder case is now filed, less than a month after the broadcaster was killed.

"Ang isyu karon, atong nakita sa mga affidavit, ang ngalan (sa mga suspek) duna may 'Ka,' murag duna may connotation nga ang responsable katong taga-pikas," Gallarde said referring to the prefix "Ka" usually attached to the names of members of the New People's Army.

"Pero kini ato lang personal nga pagtoo, kay nagtoo ta nga duna pay lalom nga hinungdan niini," he said.

Meanwhile, the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (NOPPO) is also set to release a computerized facial composite of one of the killers.