Kian’s death remains a warning to cops vs. using excessive force — Palace

The controversial death of a 17-year old senior high school student in the government’s war on drugs continues to serve as a warning for police officers not to use excessive force.

This was the importance of the commemoration of the killing of Kian Loyd Delos Santos, one of the casualties during a wave of killings in Metro Manila a year ago, Malacañang said on Thursday.

“The death anniversary is significant because this incident led to the President’s clarification on his official pronouncement on the drug war,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press briefing.

“He [President Rodrigo Duterte] will support the police if the killing is legal. He will prosecute the police if the killing is illegal,” Roque said.

The war on drugs came under fire from the public after closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage showed that policemen already had Kian under their custody before he was killed.

Police claimed that they shot Kian in self-defense after he allegedly opened fire at them.

But CCTV footage, gunpowder tests, and forensic evidence belied their claims. It only showed that the teenager was first beaten and then shot to death as he was kneeling on the ground.

President Duterte has personally assured the boy’s parents that justice would be served.

Roque said that policemen should learn from the incident “to make sure that they use force when there is an absolute necessity and when it is proportional.”

“Otherwise, they will be prosecuted,” the spokesman said.   /vvp