Commission on Human Rights INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
LUCENA CITY — The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Monday (April 3) strongly condemned the alleged sexual assault of an 18-year-old female student by two policemen in Bacoor City, Cavite province, on March 22.
“Rape is a heinous crime that inflicts physical, psychological, and emotional harm to victims,” the CHR said in a statement.
“When alleged perpetrators are law enforcement officers, it consequently undermines the very institution sworn to protect and serve the community,” the CHR stressed.
According to the commission, if the charges against the two suspects were proven to be true, “they must be held fully accountable for their actions in accordance with the rule of law.”
The CHR Region IV-A has launched its independent “motu proprio” investigation of the case.
It called on the government to take proactive measures to prevent similar incidents from happening again and “hold those who commit such atrocious crimes firmly liable.”
“While gender-related violence, unfortunately, remains a widespread issue in the country, victims still often suffer in silence,” the CHR lamented.
According to a police report, Corporal Bryan Santiago Baladjay and Master Sergeant Rey Mendoza Pogoso, both assigned to the Imus City police station, joined a drinking session held by the unidentified victim, her boyfriend, and three others inside an apartment in Barangay Molino V in the early morning of March 22.
After two hours of drinking, the victim was told by her boyfriend, also not identified in the report, to go upstairs and rest.
The two policemen eventually asked the boyfriend to buy liquor.
After the boyfriend left, the suspects went upstairs and allegedly started sexually molesting the victim, who had been awakened from her sleep.
The victim managed to escape and ran downstairs.
When the boyfriend returned, he noticed the commotion and successfully grabbed the victim, prompting them to lock themselves inside the house and create noises to attract attention.
The village watchmen responded and coordinated with the local police station, which led to the arrest of the suspects. INQ
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