No different from the underworld criminals by ROD P. KAPUNAN

"No different from the underworld criminals"
By ROD P. KAPUNAN
Daily Tribune

It was most disgusting for Chief Supt. Augusto Angcanan of the Traffic Management Group (TMG) to blurt out in defense of his men saying, “the truth will set them free.” It was an insult because what the horrified public saw was a familiar police fashion of solving a case they can't solve — applying the underworld method of rubbing out alleged suspects. Their superiors, including Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman Chief Supt. Leopoldo Bataoil, are trying to cover it up, even suggesting that the shocked public shouldn't complain since the alleged suspects have been tagged as notorious carnappers long wanted by the law.

Such was the unfortunate fate of Anthony Dulay, Francis Xavier Manzano and Anton Guillermo Cu-Unjing, who come from prominent families, meeting their death in the hands of the most notorious unit of the PNP, with the police force forgetting that all the vilifications against them now having no more legal and probative value, since they know that dead men tell no tales and in the three suspects' case, they can hardly rebut that they did not stop when their car was flagged down, or disclaim that after a brief chase, there was an exchange of fire, and that Senior Insp. Samson Belmonte was hit on his right lower knee not by a fellow cop in frenzy firing his gun on them.

The discrepancy in Angcanan's version is unacceptable. The video tape catching the cops by surprise shows it was an ambush conducted to finish off the alleged suspects in a blocked area they thought was safe to carry out their executions. It looked like premeditated murder, for if the motive was to simply arrest the alleged suspects, they could have carried it out while the three were still in that night strip allegedly meeting with another group as the cops claim.

Surrounding and telling them to raise their hands would have scared the alleged suspects to death, as they have no previous criminal record of murder. It was the least risky as it would not have given them the opportunity to get their guns inside the vehicle. No one is alive to state that it was not case of policemen planting evidence. The TMG unit ignored that option that could have given the alleged suspects the least chance to escape, to use their alleged guns, and most important have them arrested and interrogated on the alleged 22 stolen vehicles now being charged at them.

In trying to clean up the mess, the lousy TMG team now comes out with their unbelievable version and even expect the public to swallow their tale. To reiterate, all their claims are now self-serving because that bloody incident could have been avoided if the alleged suspects were immediately surrounded and asked to surrender peacefully in the place where they were first spotted. But they did not, as in all probability, all the cops had was raw information that they were a bunch of carnappers and, who knows, somebody up there wants them dead. A simple alibi of defiance to stop, especially if nobody is around, is all that is needed for these trigger-happy cops to open fire.

The three were not even suspects because from the very admission of the PNP, there was no pending case against them in court nor was a warrant of arrest been issued against any one of them. The 10-feet tall yarn that the three young men were members of the so-called “Valle Verde Gang” responsible for the theft of several luxurious vehicles, and lately presenting a witness in support of their allegation, would not mean anything now for it seems they have already been executed before they could be tried in court.

Stupid as they are, they did not even circulate posters warning the public of the three with their pictures, names and crimes they committed, and giving rewards leading to their arrest or for them to be shot on sight the way monster cops summarily execute suspected terrorists.

Curiously, all the accusations against them surfaced right after they were killed.

Even assuming there is no crime in shooting a dead man, secretary of Justice Raul Gonzalez is not supposed to say that because that would trigger emotional outrage on the moral sensibility of the people. Whether one is a Christian, he is expected to respect the remains of the person. In that situation, the legal presumption is they were still alive, and shooting them again was a despicable violation of the rules.

Nonetheless, if the alleged suspects were already dead, the cop committed an even worse crime of outraging and scoffing the dead, and whatever way one would look at the video tape it is hard to believe that it was a simple case of multiple homicide. Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Angelo Reyes does not even have the right to say the public only saw part of the incident in which he has no way also of telling us what that unseen portion was all about. Rather, what the public saw affirms the truth that many of our policemen today are no different from the underworld criminals licensed to snuff out the life of anybody, and confident their bosses would readily absolve them.

Behind The Scenes of Philippine Carnapping

I understand why no one will reveal the truth of how this whole carjacking scheme really works in the Philippines. It's for fear of getting hurt. The country is in such bad shape that truthful citizens are harmed and killed. My classmates and friends have been victims of carnapping. It's a horrible thing to happen. However, the most horrific part of it is learning how it really works.

Here is a simple map of what is happening in the Philippines today -- 2005:

STEP 1. Corrupt military personnel / NBI will carnap (carjack) a citizen's car.

STEP 2. This car will now be stored in a secret compound.

STEP 3. Corrupt military personnel / NBI will then kill people who would fit the profile of a carnapper that the public will believe. They will tell the public that they just killed carnappers. The public will believe them and see them as heroes.

STEP 4. Corrupt military personnel / NBI will dig into their compound of pre-stolen vehicles (which they may have already pulled into pieces) and use them as evidence that the innocent people they just killed (their "staged carnappers to the public") stole those cars. They will also dig for people that fear them to act as witnesses or carjacked victims of those they just killed. This will solidify their case and help their public image.

If you don't believe this, scour through the rich neighborhoods and you will find lowly paid, corrupt military personnel / nbi living and funding mult-million homes in exclusive neighborhoods in the Philippines.

If you don't believe this, just realize what has happened and will happen to the case of Francis Xavier Manzano, my kind classmate who would cannot even step on a cockroach or a spider to kill it.

If you don't believe this, ask why the arms that were planted in the vehicle of the three men they just killed in Ortigas last Nov 7 were "from" the military. One of the guns those "claim" to be in the vehicle was so sophisticated that you can only find in the military. Hel-lo!!

Do the police really think that Filipinos are so stupid that we can't see through their corruption?! Guys.... we have to do something about this... or it will happen to one of us.

We're not talking Hollywood here. Those cops cannot pretend to be Stephen Spielbergs. Those innocent lives they have victimized are real people's lives -- our neighbors, our countrymen, our friends, our family, our Filipinos. We, the public, must stop being ignorant about this. This is real life corruption that can and will affect everyone one of us.

Manzano Was Still Alive!!!

The police are back-pedaling as much as they can -- to a point where they are so embarassed by the truth. The unfortunate part is that we may just witness the police destroy the lives of other people to cover the truth.

It's 2005 and we have new ways of setting the truth - the Internet! People, feel empowered by this and help give justice to the Francis Xavier Manzano, who was innocent and clean from all this trash that the police are staging.

Bullying the Eye Witness

The cameraman is reported to be in hiding. The police are doing as much as they can to bully any credible witnesses that will unravel their coverup. In fact, many people's lives who pose to uncover the truth about the TMG mistakes and corruption are now in danger. Welcome to the life of a third-world country citizen!

But there's hope! We have the Internet and we know how to spread the truth. I truly believe that Filipinos are good-hearted people who wish for peace. Don't let me down, people! Don't let these boys, who died under the police corruption, down.

Irony. The Tables Are Slowly Turning

Excerpt:
Asked why the report was turned over to the Internal Affairs Services, the PNP spokesman, Chief Supt. Leopoldo Bataoil, replied: Lomibao "is very sensitive to issues and concerns, including the morale and welfare of our cops."

The police are obviously more concerned of protecting their own men rather than the citizens of the Philippines. Please tell me there is "at least" one cop that has the conscience and courage to step up and tell the truth -- be a true proctector of the people and their safety.

Now, the police want their investigation findings in super-tight secrecy. The ironic part is that they were so quick in calling the media about "catch" before they realized they were being videotaped and had honest witnesses willing to tell the real truth of what happened.

I was watching the news on TV and saw one of the police chiefs being interviewed. He was "overly" defending his officers to a point where he almost looks insane. Then he said on the interview, "My officers are innocent until proven guilty."

My jaw dropped at that (and so did the remote control from my hand). Who is innocent until proven guilty again? Are not the three men killed by the officers innocent until proven guilty -- especially since they had no records or documentation beforehand (and even after on Francis Xavier Manzano) that these three men are guilty criminals?!!!!!!

And now they want to keep the media in the dark --- now that they, themselves, have realized the big mistakes their own officers have done. Bite your tongue and suck on a lemon!

Cabbie comes out with version of Pasig 'shootout'

A taxi driver plying the Ortigas route in Pasig on Tuesday claimed that the encounter between police and suspected carjackers last week was a rubout contrary to statements made by law enforcers.

"Grabe 'yung ginawa [ng mga pulis], bakit hindi man lang tinanong muna sila, niratrat derecho[ang mga suspek] (What they was gruesome. They did not even stop the suspects' car for questioning, they just opened fire)," the witness, identified only as "Mang Ado," told TV Patrol World.

The driver said he witnessed the incident after droppping off a passenger at EDSA Shangri-La Hotel. After the hotel, he was cruising along Ortigas Street for a passenger when he saw a Toyota Revo van tailing a red car.

He said he was surprised when he heard gunshots.

Carjacking suspects Anton Cu-Unjieng, Bryan Dulay and Francis Xavier Manzano, who were aboard a red Nissan Exalta, were killed in what police claimed was a shootout near the corner of Garnet and Ortigas streets on November 7.

The witness said he did not see anyone from the car firing at the policemen from the Revo. "Hindi. Ang nagbabaril lang 'yung nasa Revo... nang ma-cut at maharangan ng Revo ang pulang kotse."

"Pinagbababaril pa 'yung kotse, 'yung isa nga sinuksok pa talaga 'yung baril niya sa loob ng kotse...'yung isang pulis, tinutukan kami at pinaikot kami (They shot at the car and one of the policemen placed what looked like a gun inside the car)," Mang Ado said.

The driver said he came out with the revelation though he fears for his family, especially since his young children. He also said his conscience bothered him.

PNP Panics

There is word that a high-ranking PNP officer will be reporting that Francis Xavier Manzano single-handedly carnapped him. Definitely a sign of panic for the police that they would go this far to report such a fraud. As I mentioned earlier, observe how the police will find and/or create as much dirt as they can on Francis Xavier Manzano.

For every defense the police creates, they successfully reveal their incompetence because they stupidly do not realize the strong evidence that can prove their big lies.

Please pray for the protection of Francis Xavier Manzano, the two other victims, and their families. The TMG police were caught in a very bad situation that could reveal how corrupt they are. If it weren't for the videos and the courageous witnesses who were willing to state the facts, despite contradiction to the stories of the police and the dangerous threat they may receive from the police, and the many supportive readers of this blog, justice may never be reached in this matter. Let's hope justice is served soon. I hope that innocent lives will no longer be taken and destroyed by this group.

You’re on Candid Camera!

You’re on Candid Camera!
MY VIEWPOINT By Ricardo V. Puno, Jr.
The Philippine Star 11/15/2005

An extended version of the UNTV video which recorded the fatal shooting of the three suspected carjackers in Ortigas Center, Pasig City, illustrates the folly of taking hard positions before a full-dress investigation has established all the facts.

Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Angelo Reyes stuck his neck out in vigorous defense of the Traffic Management Group operatives who took part in that incident. He may turn out have been a genius in retrospect. Or he may prove to have been a reckless cheerleader for poorly-trained gunmen in uniform whose basic instinct was to kill immediately rather than go the considerably more difficult route of enforcing the law in a civilized society.

Let me reiterate at the outset that what is needed in this case is hard facts arrived at by independent and qualified investigators, not the self-serving accounts of subalterns and comrades whose motivations, competence and impartiality are questionable.

The early reinstatement of all the involved operatives after only one day of suspension, on the basis of their own unverified explanations, as well as the results of PNP lab paraffin tests which by their own terms were inconclusive, is a clear indication of an unseemly rush to exoneration.

There is a tendency to think, incorrectly, that since there was evidence that the suspects were really involved in car thefts, they had lost all their rights, including the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. But their actual roles in carnapping or carjacking cases still had to be ascertained, whether they had in fact harmed or killed their victims, how many crimes they had been involved in, their modus operandi.

Not all of them, if any, might have committed capital offenses. Even if they had, summary executions are not the way we dispense justice in this country, at least last time I checked.

Admittedly too, lawmen have been injured or killed while going after carnappers and carjackers. They have a right to protect themselves and to respond to attacks with reasonable force. But there are "rules of engagement" which govern such encounters. These rules provide criteria for distinguishing legitimate shootouts from rubouts or summary executions which renegade lawmen and latter-day Dirty Harry’s seem to find more convenient, in light of the perceived impotence of our court system.

Still, the government’s various anti-crime task forces are not vigilantes in uniform or white-hooded avenging night riders. The fact that lawlessness – whether petty crimes, sexual offenses, armed robbery, drug-dealing, murder, kidnapping with ransom, or car thefts–is a hard nut to crack does not give law enforcers an open license to kill.

Going after criminals may be a hard, perhaps impossible, task in this country. But that is the life that agents of the law have chosen. I know many complain they’re not paid enough. Well, they are free to go do something else. No one’s forcing them to stay. But for as long as they remain, they can’t use the ways of outlaws to enforce the law.

The whining of TMG head Chief Superintendent Augusto Angcanan, to the effect that his men may lose their "enthusiasm" if questioned every time they are involved in fatal encounters with suspects, is particularly disheartening. His gross misapprehension of the TMG’s mission is ground for his dismissal from office. It is reason enough for him to be demoted to foot patrol duty to further his re-education.

If TMG operatives lose enthusiasm simply because they have to justify their actions when lives have been lost in an operation, then the entire group should be abolished and its duties absorbed by the PNP as a whole. It is also perhaps time to look into dismantling all "task forces" and placing full responsibility on the entire police organization for all kinds of crime. All policemen, from SPO1s to the Director General, should be made answerable for uncontrolled crime in their particular areas of assignment.

Return all policemen to anti-crime duty. Dissolve that silly VIP protection group and recall all bodyguards and mounted escorts of government officials. Put them back on the streets where they’re really needed. Deploy Special Action Force squads to local police districts to serve as organic SWAT teams. Involve local governments more in law enforcement, and make sure "operational control" by LGUs is a reality, not mere theory.

Going back to the Ortigas incident, the UNTV extended video clip you saw exclusively on the Insider newscast was a real shocker. Although the video does not provide absolute certainty of that night’s events, it does raise the possibility that things didn’t quite happen the way official police reports say they did.

The suspects could have been alive, although disabled and helpless inside their car, at the time they were shot in the head at pointblank range by TMG operatives. The video seems to show the two suspects in the front seats still stirring. They may not have been armed and the handgun found on one of them could have been planted.

They may not have actually fired at the TMG agents because the windows of their car were closed. The license plates found in the back seat of the suspects’ car may have also been planted. The trajectory of the bullet holes in the unmarked police car were all outward, and could not have been caused by incoming fire.

The extended UNTV video clip raises these and other serious questions. Contrary to crime scene photos, the video shows suspect Brian Dulay without a gun under his hand before a coup d’grace was apparently delivered. An operative is later seen engaged in some activity around his lifeless body.

After the shooting, another operative opens a rear passenger door and seems to be busy placing something (license plates?) in the back seat. The person in the back, Francis Manzano, had only two bullet wounds, both of them to the head and shot at close range.

The UNTV video caught on tape the area behind the scene of the "encounter." Contrary to Secretary Reyes’s version, no marked police cars could be seen. Nor were those uniformed policemen, who Angie said flagged down the suspects’ vehicle and then joined the chase when that vehicle failed to stop, anywhere in sight.

I’m not saying the police car and uniformed cops weren’t there, only that the video doesn’t confirm it. Other credible evidence will have to back up that claim.

The investigation of the Ortigas incident, if it is being seriously conducted by people in earnest search of the truth, is far from over. Any premature action or statement by police and other government officials opens them to the suspicion that they are directing the investigation towards a pre-determined result. That is exactly what is meant by a whitewash, a synonym of cover-up.

Another Video That Shows Police Corruption

"The station aired a second video on Monday, which showed police apparently placing something inside the suspects' car after the alleged shootout."

New witness disputes Pasig shootout claims

A witness, who is a former mayor, steps up. Here's a snippet of his report:

"'Walang shootout. Hindi lumaban ang mga namatay. Hindi ko alam ang pagkatao nila, pero alam ko, hindi nakaputok ang mga 'yun (There was no shootout. I do not know them but the suspects did not shoot at the policemen,' the witness told TV Patrol World's Karen Davila."

"The witness said all the gunshots came from the policemen. No shots came from the car of the slain carjackers, he added."

"The witness said conscience forced him to surface and tell something about the incident. He said that he cannot take the police claims that the suspects were killed in a shootout. The witness said he is willing to give his testimony before any court."

The Video

I found the video that was shown over and over again all over the media. This is a horrible video, so please do not watch it if you're not prepared to see something horrible.

On the other hand, this is truly a testament of how horrible those police were for firing shots at the already immobilized 3 innocent boys. It's even more disgusting that their chief of police awards and reinstates them for morale after... um... less than a week of investigation?!

Please help get justice for Francis Xavier Manzano!

"New video shows evidence vs suspected carjackers possibly planted"

"The pieces of evidence obtained by the Traffic Management Group from the car of three suspected carjackers who were killed in an alleged shootout Monday were possibly planted based on an extended footage provided by UNTV.

Footage taken by ABS-CBN News team at the scene 30 minutes after the incident showed Dulay’s right hand on his lap holding a gun. Police claimed the scene was untouched.

ABS-CBN’s cameramen were also able to capture stills of two car plates beside Manzano who was at the backseat of the car. This, police claimed, was as an indication the suspects were carjackers.

The footage shown by UNTV, however, showed that when the police fired at Brian Dulay point blank, his right hand was on his chest and not holding a gun.

The video also showed that after firing their guns, two policemen went close to car and were seen putting and fixing something in the vehicle.

The video showed another policeman also fixing something at the backseat of the car where Francis Manzano was seated.

The proof that the carjackers fired their guns that wounded a police officer was also disputed by the UNTV video. The footage showed the bullet-riddled windows of the suspects’ car were all closed."

Media Finally Sees The Other Side

ABS-CBN: "Suspected carjackers may have survived TMG operation"

"Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez also came in defense of the TMG saying the police did not commit any crime because the suspects were already dead when they were shot anew."

Um.... um.... what can I say to that? I bet Gonzales also believes that there's nothing wrong with kicking someone who's already down.

Columnists

It's interesting to learn how the people are reacting to this case. Here are 2 very different columns written in the past week. You be the judge:

#1) By Rod P. Kapunan of Tribune.net

http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20051112.com_backbencher.html


#2) By Ramon Tulfo of Inq7.net

http://news.inq7.net/metro/index.php?index=2&story_id=56277&col=31

My letter to Inq7.net:


Ramon Tulfo's column is a disgrace to Filipinos and Inq7.net's journalism. His request for sympathy towards the "overzealous" and inhumane cops puts him in the same league of ignorant people who have lost the respect for the life of a human being and the fair justice they deserve.

#1 -- "Overzealous" cops did not have the right to take away the life of Francis Xavier Manzano (or any other human being, as a matter of fact, including yours). It's a matter of human rights, plain and simple. No one has the right to "kill" another person.

#2 -- Not everyone in the car was a "carjacker," especially Francis Xavier Manzano (who was neither a criminal or a shooter). Manzano, who sat in the back seat, did not fire a gun to the police or had any control of the car. He was helpless in the back without the ability to protect himself from the actions of the driver and the cops. Talk about being damned!
The next time you or your newspaper publishes a statement that insinuates that "all" three men were carjackers/carnappers/criminals and that "all" three men fired at the police -- please have your facts straight and consult your lawyers first. You are misguiding your readers by your fraudulent statements and reports. Your disregard for the friends and family of Francis Manzano and careless reporting stains your credibility and of Inq7.net's.

Those cops had the "intent" to kill Manzano, despite his innocense. By Tulfo's column, you show your "intent" to be reckless with your power to reach the mass.

If your intent was to gain symphaty for those cops, then you failed. Manzano was innocent. Manzano was brutally killed. And, now, because of writers like you, Manzano is being trashed in the public eye to be remembered negatively. And you could care less, because "overzealous" cops have yet to murder your child, your parents, your relative, or your friend.

How inhumane Ramon Tulfo and his hypnotised readers have become!