JUSTICE Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Tuesday said he is expecting the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to soon file a criminal complaints against the policemen involved in the alleged “misencounter” in Sulu last June 29 that killed four intelligence officers of the Philippine Army.
Guevarra said the initial report submitted by the NBI field agents to his office showed that the Army officers mostly sustained bullet wounds on the back.
“The bullet wounds were mostly on the back of the body, with one soldier sustaining eight wounds at the back and extremities. While the three other soldiers had three wounds each. But all of them sustained bullet wounds on their backs,” Guevarra said.
The military leadership has accused the police officers of executing the victims contrary to their claim of a misencounter.
“Unless the NBI intends to submit a supplemental report, I expect that a criminal complaint will be filed very soon with the DOJ,” he added.
The four Army intelligence agents who died in the shooting incident were identified in reports as Maj. Marvin Indammog, 39; Capt. Irvin Managuelod, 33; Sgt. Eric Velasco, 38; and Cpl. Abdal Asula, 33.
Ballistic report showed that the shells and slugs found at the scene of the crime matched the firearms of the police officers involved.
He added that NBI’s initial report also contained the accounts of 10 witnesses, the forensic findings of the medico-legal and ballistic experts, and the affidavits of the family members of the deceased Army intelligence officers.
The nine policemen were immediately relieved from their post. They were identified as Staff Sgts. Almudzrin Hadjaruddin, Iskandar Susulan and Ernisar Sappal; Patrolmen Alkajal Mandangan, Rajiv Putalan and Moh Nur Parsani; Senior M/Sgt. Abdelzhimar Padjiri, M/Sgt. Hanie Baddiri and Cpl. Sulki Andaki.
The NBI’s Western Mindanao Regional Office (WEMRO) located in Zamboanga City has been directed to conduct the investigation.
Both, Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have agreed to let the NBI conduct an impartial investigation into the incident.
The Sulu Police Provincial Office claimed that policemen on patrol from the Jolo Municipal Police Station and the Police Drug Enforcement Unit reportedly apprehended four men onboard a vehicle, who at first attempted to flee but later on allegedly pointed guns at the policemen.
On the other hand, the military denied that version of the policemen, saying that it was the policemen who allegedly approached the victims and for still unknown reasons fired shots at them.