Mom tries to keep son from jail, fails

Thursday, March 24, 2011

A LAST-MINUTE attempt to save him from being jailed failed.

Judge Gilbert Moises yesterday denied the petition for habeas corpus filed by the mother of a 42-year-old man whom police nabbed on suspicion of having participated in the killing of PO1 William Mangubat last March 11.

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In his one-page order released yesterday, Moises, presiding judge of the Regional Trial Court Branch 18, said the habeas corpus petition Angela Rama, mother of Alfredo Llamedo, filed that sought to release the accused from police custody has been rendered moot.

Mangubat, 26, was shot dead by two suspected robbers while responding to a robbery alarm in Sitio Mananga 2, Barangay Tabunok Talisay City last March 11.

Angela, through her lawyer Wendell Quiban, filed the petition against Chief Insp. Rodolfo Albotra, Jr., chief of the provincial police’s Intelligence Branch, at the RTC yesterday morning. It was raffled off to Judge Moises’ sala.

In her petition, Angela said the police arrested Alfredo in their house in Upper Villa Bulsita, Bulacao Pardo, Cebu City last March 20. Alfredo was nabbed without an arrest warrant.

Alfredo was detained at the Liloan Police Station on March 21, where he got injuries in various parts of his body.

“My son revealed that police officers inflicted the injuries,” said Angela in her petition.

Transfer

From the Liloan Police Station, Alfredo was transferred last March 22 to the detention cell of the Police Intelligence Branch of the provincial police in Barangay Lahug.

Angela said they learned that Alfredo was arrested because the firearm allegedly used in the killing of Mangubat was pawned to him. The accused denied it.

Angela also claimed the detention of her son was unlawful.

In an interview before the hearing of the petition, Alfredo denied owning the gun. He denied any involvement in the murder of the police officer. Alfredo also denied he is into the illegal drugs trade.

During the hearing, PO2 Sheilo Quimat, case investigator, said Alfredo was arrested for illegal gun possession and selling of illegal drugs.

Quimat told Moises they filed yesterday charges against Alfredo for violation of provisions of Republic Act 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) and Republic Act 8294 (law on illegal possession of firearms) at the Office of the Cebu City Prosecutor.

The prosecutor recommended P80,000 as bail for the firearms case, but no bail was recommended for the drug-pushing charge.

In his order, Moises said the filing of two charges against the accused rendered the petition moot and academic.

Moises also directed Quimat to bring Alfredo to the Cebu City Medical Center for medical examination and submit to court a report within 24 hours.

Robbery

Meanwhile, a female college student was the latest victim of robbery at Mananga Bridge in Talisay City.

Four masked men held up Anne Gellie Pagayaman, 19, single, of Barangay Lipata, Minglanilla, Cebu, yesterday dawn.

She lost her two Nokia cellular phones, school ID and exam permit.

Pagayaman was on a south-bound multicab driven by Domingo Cabi-sarez when four men flagged down the vehicle while passing the Mananga Bridge at 3:30 p.m.

The four then held the victim up at gunpoint and took away her bag containing her belongings.

The robbers pulled off the heist while the patrol policemen were not around.

Post

The Talisay City police station has assigned at least six policemen to conduct night patrols in the vicinity of the Mananga Bridge and Sitio Kawatan.

The sitio, a populated interior area, is within walking distance from the bridge where most of the holdups occurred.

The latest robbery took place hours after the city council passed a resolution to construct a police outpost at the entrance of Sitio Kawatan.

Legislators find the outpost the most practical way to prevent robbers from preying on innocent civilians and multicab passengers.

PO1 Mangubat, a rookie policeman, was killed while chasing two robbers toward the
interior of Sitio Kawatan two weeks ago. He was fatally shot in the head.

The city government has offered P100,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest of robbers who killed the young policeman.

Acting Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) Director Patrocinio Comendador Jr. sent a team of Special Reaction Unit (SRU) to Talisay City as augmentation force.

The SRU has been tasked to assist the local police in patrolling crime-prone areas, particularly in Sitio Kawatan, Barangay Tabu-nok.

Comendador said the CPPO will assess the need to provide additional personnel for the Talisay City Police Station, should the plan to put up an outpost in Sitio Kawatan push through.