Saturday, November 10, 2007 Cop, traffic aide charged for death of jeepney driver By Marna H. Dagumboy
CAMP OLIVAS -- A police officer and a traffic enforcer were charged with arbitrary detention and homicide after a driver they arrested was hospitalized and died.
Senior Superintendent Guillermo Eleazar, chief of the 3rd Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit, identified the accused lawmen as Police Officer 3 Roberto Delfin, a member of Apalit Police and Glen Sevilla, a traffic enforcer also in said town.
The victim on the other hand was identified as Jesus Turla, driver of a passenger jeepney in Apalit, and a resident in Barangay San Nicolas,
City of San Fernando.
On Tuesday, Turla's wife Milagros filed the charges against Delfin and Sevilla before the Provincial Prosecutor's Office.
On October 31, 2007, Turla sought police assistance relative to the death of her husband who was arrested by Sevilla last October 9 for loading passengers in prohibited area along the MacArthur highway in Apalit town.
Upon arrest, Turla reportedly presented a Temporary Official Permit (TOP) to Sevilla instead of a driver's license.
Sevilla, the assigned traffic enforcer, did not accept the TOP and tried to detach the license plate number of Turla's passenger jeep. A heated argument ensued between the two.
This prompted Sevilla to call the assistance of three Apalit policemen.
Reports said one of the three policemen allegedly hit Turla's stomach using M-16 rifle.
Turla was then taken to the Apalit Police Station where he was detained afterwards.
While in jail, Turla complained of severe stomachache but the policemen allegedly ignored his request of hospitalization.
On October 10, 2007, Turla was released with the help of his operator.
No charges were filed against him in relation to the incident.
After his release, Turla was confined at the Jose B. Lingad Memorial Hospital in the City of San Fernando. He died last October 16 while being treated by physicians here.
Based on the findings of the hospital, the cause of Turla's death was multiple organ failure due to irreversible hypovolemic shock, massive blood loss, liver injury, and blunt abdominal trauma.
