A POLICEMAN who shot dead a Grade 9 student in Bago City, Negros Occidental was released from detention Friday morning, March 8, after the 36-hour reglementary period lapsed.
Police Captain Reynaldo Severino, deputy chief of Bago City Police Station, said that Patrolman Richard Rites, 32, was released at 10:05 a.m. since no charges were filed against him.
On March 6, Rites, of Barangay Taloc, Bago City and was assigned at the Provisional Company Mobile Force Battalion of Regional Office in Western Visayas, voluntarily surrendered after shooting to death a 17-year-old boy, whose name is being withheld for being a minor.
Severino said the victim’s family is still preparing their documents to file homicide charges against Rites.
They boy’s family is requesting for an autopsy.
“It’s up to him (Rites) to defend himself in court, say that it was only done in self-defense. We learned that he only filed a leave from his unit because it’s his birthday today (March 8) and he wanted to celebrate it with his family in Bago City,” Severino said.
Investigation showed that Rites was inside his store when a group of teenagers asked him for help, claiming that six to seven people armed with short firearms were chasing them.
Rites advised them to get inside their house for safety, but suddenly, one of the armed persons fired at him but the gun malfunctioned. Rites immediately closed the door and introduced himself as a police officer but the armed group continued kicking the door.
When Rites opened the door, the 17-year-old reportedly pointed a .38 caliber revolver at him. This prompted him to shoot the teenager using his 9mm service firearm. The boy was hit but managed to run. However, he fell on the ground some 50 meters away from Rites’ house.
The boy was brought to a hospital in Bago City where he was pronounced dead. (MAP)