Saturday, March 15, 2008 Raps v. German nat'l for killing wife junked By Victor L. Camion
THE Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Negros Oriental junked charges against a German national for the death of his Filipina wife almost a year ago.
Police Inspector Lorenzo Abella, former chief of police of Sibulan town, charged Nigel Neve with the crime of parricide for allegedly killing Gina Sumarago-Neve on April 21, 2007.
The victim's body was found in Sitio Pansil, Barangay Looc, Sibulan. The body was believed to be dumped.
The couple's residence is at Talay, Dumaguete City.
"For the sake of argument, it is still possible that the respondent is indeed responsible for the death of his wife Gina. But this possibility is so broad that we cannot establish probable cause thereof," reads a four-page resolution approved by provincial prosecutor Diosdado Hermosa.
Quoting the complainant's witnesses, the panel of investigators headed by prosecutor Juditho Agan also believed the death of Gina is connected with her problem with drugs and her drunkenness. "But, just the same, we have no evidence thereof," the prosecutors' resolution further reads.
The prosecutors stressed that nobody actually knew nor saw how Gina died. The panel of prosecutors further said the circumstances narrated by the witnesses as having allegedly transpired at the house of the Neves are not sufficient to establish probable cause that the husband is responsible for the death of his wife.
The prosecutors also questioned the testimony of the witness Roberto Silva who allegedly saw the foreigner threw the dead body of the victim at around 1 a.m.
"Why would a driver who just threw away a dead person switch on the dome light and open the window of his vehicle? So that he will be seen and recognized?" the panel of prosecutors asked.
Police records also show that a certain Lorenzo Abo found the victim's body around 5:30 p.m.
Neve's counsel, lawyer Raymund Mercado, argued that Silva did not even see the dead body of the victim.
The post mortem examination shows that the cause of death is intra-cranial hemorrhage due to head injuries.
