Michael Ray enters not guilty plea in twin murders

Former Senior Supt. Michael Ray Aquino maintained his innocence in the Dacer-Corbito case, pleading not guilty on Monday to charges he had something to do with the 2000 double murders.

The arraignment in Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 32 lasted less than an hour, although it took a decade for it to happen.

After 10 years in hiding in the United States, Aquino was extradited back to the country in June to face charges in the killing of publicist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito. The two were allegedly killed by elements of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force. The Paoctf is now defunct.

Aquino, former Paoctf chief of operations, allegedly received orders from then Paoctf head, now Sen. Panfil Lacson, to abduct the victims, according to coaccused and fellow Paoctf officer Cezar Mancao II.

Aquino claims that what Mancao alleges never happened, one of Aquino’s lawyers, Simonette Sibal-Pulido, said in a phone interview.

Aquino’s arraignment was supposed to be held a month ago, but was rescheduled pending the comments of other parties in the case to two motions filed by his lawyers upon his return to the country.

Aquino’s lawyers filed a motion for reinvestigation with the Manila RTC, arguing that a recent Court of Appeals ruling affirmed by the Supreme Court deemed Mancao’s testimonies not credible.

The appellate court ruling virtually cleared Lacson of the murder charges. Since charges against Aquino were also based on Mancao’s testimonies, then it should follow that a reinvestigation to find probable cause to charge Aquino should be conducted, Sibal-Pulido said.

State prosecutors asked the court to deny the motion for reinvestigation, saying that the case against Aquino did not rely on Mancao’s statement.

“In short, such findings of the Court of Appeals are irrelevant, immaterial and find no application to accused Aquino’s present case,” they said in an opposition dated July 26.

The comment said the panel of prosecutors finding probable cause to charge Aquino in 2001 was based mostly on the testimonies of ex-Paoctf officer Glenn Dumlao, and “those findings have long become final as accused Aquino did not question them.”

Aquino’s counsel also filed an urgent motion seeking his continued detention at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) instead of the Manila City Jail and other prison facilities.

Lawyers of Aquino said that as a former police officer who caused the capture of numerous criminals, he was at risk if he were to be jailed with them.

Judge Thelma Bunyi-Medina has yet to issue resolutions on the two pending motions but Aquino has remained in the custody of the NBI.

The preliminary conference for Aquino has been set for Sept. 7, while the pretrial conference is scheduled for Sept. 14.