GONE ASTRAY | Bothered by their conscience, three police officers and a former lawman in Cebu province surrender to their colleagues over their involvement in the Feb. 13 slaying of a couple they robbed in San Fernando town. (Photo by NESTLE SEMILLA / Inquirer Visayas)
CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines — Three officers and a former colleague are facing criminal charges for the robbery and slay of a couple in San Fernando town, Cebu, last week.
Staff Sergeants Rene Catamora, Junrey Ypil, and Junrey Batobalonos as well as former Staff Sgt. Esmeraldo Quillosa were charged with robbery with double homicide in the Cebu provincial prosecutor’s office on Tuesday following their surrender.
Col. Josefino Ligan, chief of the police’s Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division in Central Visayas, said the suspects executed an extrajudicial confession, admitting to robbing and killing Peter Baringui-an and his wife, Ma. Louela, inside their house at Barangay Panadtaran, San Fernando, on Feb. 13.
Ligan said the group implicated Master Sgt. Alvin Enad in the crime.
Enad was not included in the criminal charges since investigation of his alleged involvement was still ongoing. He, however, was “restricted to camp” at the Cebu provincial police office while the four suspects were detained at the stockade of the Central Visayas police headquarters in Cebu City.
The Baringui-ans were about to have dinner on Feb. 13 when five armed men barged into their house and took them outside where they were shot and killed. The group, police said, took P1.5 million in cash and jewelry from the couple.
Ligan said Peter grappled for control of a gun with one of the suspects, prompting the latter to shoot him and his wife, Ma. Louela, a village council member in San Fernando.
Bothered by conscience
Catamora, who was assigned at the Consolacion municipal police station, was the first to surrender at Camp Sergio Osmeña Sr. on Feb. 18. The following day, Ypil, who was assigned at Danao City police office, went to the Cebu provincial police office to turn himself in.
Batobalonos surrendered to the Lapu-Lapu City police on Feb. 20 while Quillosa yielded to the San Fernando police on Feb. 21.
Enad, who assigned at the Ronda municipal police station, was held at the provincial police office on Feb. 22.
Ligan said the suspects, except for Enad, confessed their involvement in the crime, saying they were bothered by their conscience.
Brig. Gen. Roque Vega, director of the Central Visayas police, said they were conducting a deeper investigation to determine if there was a mastermind or other people involved in the crime.
“This incident will not affect us. Instead, this will inspire us to intensify our operations against scalawags in the organization,” he said.
“I assure the public and the victim’s family that there will be no cover-up in this case even if four of them are active policemen. There shall be no letup in our efforts to [cleanse] the organization,” Vega added.
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