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Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Subic rape victim's sister bares bribe try
MANILA -- A witness in the trial of four US Marines accused of raping a 22-year-old Filipino woman told the court on Monday that the alleged victim had been offered money to drop the charges hours after the alleged attack occurred.
Annaliza Franco, 25, testified that she was with her stepsister -- identified only as Nicole, a name assigned by the court to protect her identity -- to file a complaint about the alleged rape when a Filipino man approached them.
Franco told Judge Benjamin Pozon of the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) that a certain "Ben Natividad" made the offer while she and Nicole were about to give their statement to investigators of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Law Enforcement Division Intelligence and Investigation Office on the night of November 2.
The rape allegedly took place on November 1 at Subic Bay, near Olongapo city, west of Manila. The Marines had just finished counter-terrorism maneuvers with Philippine troops.
Prosecutors contend the woman was raped by Lance Corporal Daniel Smith in a moving van while the three other accused - Lance Corporal Keith Silkwood, Lance Corporal Dominic Duplantis and Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier - cheered him on.
Franco, who has a different last name from her stepsister, quoted the man as saying "just accept money" and "don't continue with the case anymore." Franco was on vacation with her stepsister in Subic Bay but was not with her in the van at the time of the alleged rape.
Defense lawyers said they were surprised by the claim and would never have made such an offer, according to lawyer Jose Justiniano.
Franco said they refused the offer, adding that her sister was intent on filing the complaint and pursuing the case. She told private prosecutor Evalyn Ursua she was hesitant in disclosing the incident for fear something bad might happen to them.
Two prosecution witnesses, Joseph Khunghon and Paquito Torres, said a Ben Natividad, the chief of staff of SBMA chairman Feliciano Salonga, was present during that time, along with Zambales Representative Mitos Magsaysay and her husband JB and lawyer Carlitos Cruz.
It was not clear if this was the same Ben Natividad mentioned by Franco since she told the court the man did not identify his position or connection with any government entity. She also could not recall the amount that was offered.
The defense professed ignorance at the offer and said they were likewise surprised by Franco's disclosure. "We don't know anything about such an offer and we were also surprised by her disclosure. As far as the defense team is concerned, we have nothing to do with it and we will not make such an offer," said Justiniano, who stood as counsel for Silkwood.
Franco also narrated to the court the shabby treatment they got from a lady doctor at the James Gordon Memorial Hospital where the rape victim was taken for medical examination after the incident.
She said a certain Doctor Estera even told her sister prior to the conduct of a urine test: "Na-rape ka pala baka naman ginusto mo?" (Were you raped or you wanted it to happen?)
Franco said the remark caused her stepsister to become hysterical. She said her stepsister also complained of the way the lady doctor swabbed her private parts.
Franco cried when she told the court how Timoteo Soriano, driver of the van where the alleged assault took place, denied it was her sister who was in the van with the US marines.
She said she confronted Soriano and he took pity on her and promised to help them get justice. "I told him (Soriano) I hope this thing will not happen to your daughter if you have one."
Soriano, who filed an affidavit saying Nicole was indeed raped, later recanted his statement and claimed police forced him into implicating the US soldiers.
In between sobs and with her voice raised, the witness, in apparent reference to the accused Silkwood, Chad Carpentier, and Daniel Smith -- who were sitting at the front seats of the gallery, asked why they could not look at her during her testimony.
The rape charge is punishable by up to 40 years in prison. The Marines have refused to answer the charge, and the judge entered a plea of innocent for them. (AH/AP/Sunnex)
(June 27, 2006 issue)
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