THE Quezon City Regional Trial Court (QC RTC) on Wednesday, October 6, 2021 acquitted 19 police officers who were charged of homicide in relation to the death of Albuera, Leyte mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., father of self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa.
Roland Inting, legal counsel of one of the accused, said Judge Catherine Manodon of QC RTC Branch 104 dismissed the charges against all the 19 Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) cops due to lack of evidence.
Inting said the witnesses presented by the prosecution failed to identify any of the police officers present in the crime scene.
Espinosa was killed after allegedly initiating a gunfight against the policemen during the service of a search warrant over illegal possession of firearms inside his detention jail at the Leyte sub-provincial jail in Baybay City on the evening of November 5, 2016.
The operation was led by then Superintendent Marvin Marcos who was relieved from post following the incident.
Marcos is now the director of the CIDG in Soccscksargen.
Espinosa’s arrest on October 4, 2016, stemmed from the recovery of P88 million worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) and various high-powered firearms in his residence in Barangay Tinago Dos.
He was included in the drug list issued by President Rodrigo Duterte a month after he took office and the administration launched its crackdown on illegal drugs. (SunStar Philippines)