Raps filed vs protester nabbed in Sona rally
A man who was arrested for joining a group of protesters during Monday’s State of the Nation Address has been charged after he was identified as among those who wrecked a dump truck during a skirmish with antiriot police.
Arturo Capellan, 20, was subjected to inquest proceedings for malicious mischief on Tuesday night in the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.
Chief Inspector Rodelio Marcelo of the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit said his men also charged Capellan with physical injuries after the driver of the dump truck was hurt when his truck was stoned by protesters.
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The inquest prosecutor, however, recommended that the second charge be subjected to a regular preliminary investigation.
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The case for malicious mischief, on the other hand, has been filed in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court.
Capellan was the only one arrested by the police after he was identified as part of the angry mob which stoned and smashed with sticks the windshield of the dump truck which was being used by antiriot policemen to block the protesters.
Aside from the dump truck, the mob also trashed a mobile pickup truck of the QCPD.
According to the police, the protesters also destroyed steel fences put up by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority along Commonwealth Avenue.
The heated confrontation began when ralliers affiliated with the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan tried to go through a police barricade which had been set up to prevent them from going near the House of Representatives where President Aquino was to deliver his Sona.
The QCPD said it was trying to identify the other militants who took part in the riot in order to file similar charges against them.
Marcello said their evidence would include photographs and video footage taken by police officers who monitored the protesters.
Police investigators said they were still trying to determine the total amount of damage to property sustained during the clash in preparation for filing of a civil case.
