MANILA, Philippines – For causing him “great emotional stress and humiliation,” a Laguna police officer implicated in the school fire in Taysan, Batangas, during the 2007 elections filed a P1.3-million damage suit at the Manila Regional Trial Court against three fellow cops who allegedly filed false charges against him.

Insp. Roberto Marinda of the Regional Intelligence Division at Camp Vicente Lim in Canlubang accused Supt. Elwin Fernandez of the Criminal Intelligence Division Group, Elpidio Ramirez and Ruel de la Cruz of the Batangas Police Provincial Office of deliberately filing “groundless and malicious” criminal and administrative cases against him in connection with the arson at Pinagbayanan Elementary School.

The predawn fire on May 15 killed teacher Nellie Banaag and poll watcher Leticia Ramos just after they had completed canvassing the votes cast the day before. A dozen others were hurt.

In the grave misconduct and oppression case he filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, Fernandez claimed that Marinda and other members of the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG) served as a “strike force” for then incumbent mayor Hernando Villena, who lost in the elections.

Fernandez said the RSOG was not mandated to perform any election-related activity in Taysan or tasked to perform any investigation of the fire incident. Witness Cesar Suyom also reportedly identified Marinda in a police lineup as one of the suspects in the school torching.

The Ombudsman, however, dismissed Fernandez’s complaint for lack of evidence.

“The mere presence of some RSOG personnel at the scene of the crime does not give proof that the entire unit or its superiors were involved therein,” said graft investigation and prosecution officer Blas Tuliao in his decision.

The RSOG, it added, was a legitimate police unit that may be utilized for other operations such as augmenting police forces during the election period. The Ombudsman also said it would be “too hasty” to conclude that the RSOG was used as a “strike force” for Villena since there were only two RSOG personnel – Marinda and SPO2 William Relos – during and after the incident.

“In the absence of any direct proof that may link the presence of respondents Relos and Marinda in Taysan, Batangas, to the rest of the respondents, the ‘strike force’ theory of the complainant (Fernandez) must fail,” said the Ombudsman.

Doubts were also cast on witness Suyom’s identification of Marinda in a police lineup when NBI’s Lloyd Orosa, who made the artist’s sketch, said Marinda was present the whole time as Suyom described the suspect for him.

“If Suyom had Marinda in mind, the taking of the sketch would not have been necessary anymore because Suyom could have conveniently identified Marinda as the perpetrator at the time,” Tuliao said.