SM bans security guard Jojo Malicdem following an incident involving a puppy being thrown from a bridge near the mall. | PHOTO: Janine Santos
MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) on Friday filed a criminal complaint against the mall security guard for throwing a puppy from an elevated footbridge in Quezon City, causing its death.
Facing a complaint before the Quezon City Prosecutors Office for violation of Republic Act 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act of 1998 is Jojo Malicdem.
PAWS was accompanied by Janine Santos, also a complainant who witnessed the incident. Her post about the incident has gone viral.
Malicdem already appeared before the Supervisory Office for Security and Investigation Agencies (SOSIA) of the Philippine National Police and gave his statement.
He denied tossing the puppy named Brownie.
He said one of the owners of the puppy shoved it in front of his face. Afraid that he would be bitten, he pushed the puppy away, causing its fall and death.
But based on the complaint, Santos, who was walking at the connecting bridge from SM City North Edsa to Trinoma saw the guard arguing with four children. She and her companion were around one meter away from the commotion.
“She saw the security guard grab something and throw it over the railing of the footbridge. Because of the loud thud, the object made when it hit the ground, the complainant Santos thought it must have been either a child or an infant,” read the complaint.
“The complainant Santos turned on her phone’s camera to focus on the object that the security guard, who she later learned was respondent Jojo S. Malicdem, had forcefully thrown from the footbridge. She saw a man pick up the object, which she saw was a puppy, from where it was lying on the ground,” the complaint further stated.
The complaint added that a man approached Malicdem and asked: “Bakit mo ginawa yun? Isusumbong ka namin! [Why did you do that? We will report you!] to which he replied: “wala akong paki! [I don’t care!]”
Anna Cabrera, PAWS executive director, said, “Evil acts such as this are always a precursor to violence against human beings.”
“There are many studies that show the strong link between cruelty to animals and crimes committed against human beings,” she emphasized.
“We are one with those who have expressed outrage and anger against this brutal crime. We thank everyone on that footbridge who spoke up, and we thank the people who emailed to inform us about this incident,” Cabrera said.
“Filing this case for violation of the Animal Welfare Act is a show of our collective commitment to bring about a truly humane society. Society must protect its weakest and its most helpless members — animals and children,” she stressed.
Cabrera added, “The law that protects animals is a law that protects us all from being victims of future acts of violence.”
Aside from PAWS, the Animal Kingdom Foundation also filed a similar complaint against Malicdem.
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