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Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Policeman scolds driver, gets beaten up by group
For reprimanding a motorist on his driving, a policeman got beaten up by a group of bystanders and lost his service firearm to one of them in a barangay in Alcantara town in southwestern Cebu last Sunday afternoon.
PO1 Vincent Letigio, 31, was driving his motorcycle to Cebu City from his hometown in Alegria when a multicab suddenly came out of a corner into the highway, almost hitting him.
Letigio stopped the multicab, introduced himself as a policeman and reprimanded the driver, warning him that he could cause an accident.
For this, Letigio got a beating. They also reportedly took his .45 pistol, which had a magazine loaded with nine bullets.
He said the passengers of the multicab were all drunk.
“Sure gyud ko nga di gyud to kabuka sa iyang mata karon kay pwerting laguma. Ang advice sa doctor kay four weeks una mayo (His eyes were so swollen. The doctor advised him to rest for four weeks),” said PO3 Brendo Beriarmiente.
Identified
Police identified five of the 10 persons accused of mauling Letigio, who is assigned at the Regional Intelligence and Investigation Division under the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7.
They are Marcelino Libato, former barangay captain of Polo, his brother Joven Libato, who drove the multicab, brother-in-law Romeo Jimenez, Wendell Cañete, who is the son of the town’s first councilor, and Larry Libato.
The five said it was Letigio who lost his temper.
They alleged he was the one who immediately scolded them and pulled out his firearm without introducing himself as a policeman.
They also lodged a complaint before the police station and claimed that it was the policeman who started the trouble.
They said they had to disarm Letigio so he would not hurt anybody.
Marcelino said that because the bystanders saw Letigio pull out his firearm, they decided to help Marcelino and beat Letigio up.
Wendell also expressed his intention to file a case against Letigio because the policeman punched him.
Beriarmiente said Marcelino was the barangay captain for several terms in Polo until he decided to run for barangay councilor when his term as captain ended.
However, he resigned as councilor to become the ambulance driver of the town while his wife replaced him at the barangay council.
At the time of the incident, the Libato family was having a reunion.
Beriarmiente said they will wait for both parties to finalize their plans for the case and just aid them in preparing their affidavits. (MEA)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (July 4, 2006 issue)
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