Wednesday, November 28, 2007 Court cancels pre-trial hearing of Ampatuan scion By Rhodamae M. Hernandez
REGIONAL Trial Court Branch 16 presiding judge Emmanuel Carpio cancelled the pre-trial hearing on the homicide case filed against Mohamad Banarin Ampatuan after one of his lawyers asked the court for its cancellation.
Lawyer Philip Pantojan, in his motion, said he was advised by the doctor to rest due to unstable blood pressure.
Ampatuan was sued for the death of Carlo Asistido at around 2:30 a.m. on July 28, 2002 at The Venue compound.
He was earlier charged with murder but was downgraded to homicide after the Northern Mindanao Prosecution Office in Cagayan de Oro City ruled that Banarin had no intention of killing Asistido since his original target was a certain Jun-jun Paglas.
The bullet, however, hit Asistido instead of Paglas.
Carpio urged the Department of Justice to reinvestigate the case after it found merit on the motion of Banarin for another round of investigation.
DOJ Secretary Raul Gonzales Gonzales tasked Region 10 prosecutors to review the case when the Davao City Prosecution Office refused to conduct another round of investigation on the case and decided to stick with its original recommendation to try Banarin for murder.
