THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has filed charges of murder, perjury and planting of evidence against the police officer who shot dead ex-Army personnel Winston Ragos over an alleged violation of quarantine protocols.
NBI Deputy Director Ferdinand Lavin said Thursday, June 4, that the charges were filed against Police Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo and four other police trainees before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.
On April 21, 2020, Florendo shot and killed Ragos near a quarantine control point along Maligaya Drive, Barangay Pasong Putik in Quezon City.
Ragos had allegedly confronted two police trainees manning the said checkpoint after he was asked to go home.
The entire Metro Manila was then under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) contain the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) epidemic in the country and part of the protocols is for the people who are not authorized to go out to stay at home.
The police trainees reported the incident to Florendo, who was their supervisor on duty at the time of incident.
Reportedly, Florendo was also informed that Ragos had a gun inside his sling bag.
A video clip showing Florendo aiming his pistol at Ragos while ordering him to put his hands up went viral on social media.
Ragos had refused to heed the order and instead tried to open his bag and face the policeman.
Florendo, who was informed that Ragos had a gun, shot Ragos twice. Ragos died instantly.
Police claimed they recovered a caliber .38 from Ragos’ bag, but Ragos’ family denied he had a gun.
Ragos was later reported to have been suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
The Philippine Army, which had asked the NBI to conduct an impartial investigation, was elated by the filing of charges against Florendo.
"May this development be the first step in our quest of justice for Ragos and his family. Through this, we hope that we can at least honor his sacrifices to the nation he served, and raise awareness on the mental health issues our soldiers face," the Army said in a statement. (SunStar Philippines)