No bail for gunman in Isabela mayor’s slay

DOMINGO. Photo by VILLAMOR VISAYA JR./INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

MANILA, Philippines—The Quezon City prosecutors office has formally recommended charges against the alleged gunman in the assassination of Mayor Erlinda Domingo of Maconacon, Isabela, and the wounding of her driver last Tuesday night outside an inn in Quezon City.

This was after the inquest prosecutor heeded the request of the Quezon City Police District to consider the recent arrest of Marsibal Indaman Abduhadi, who was captured a day after the Quezon City Prosecutor’s office had opened inquest proceedings against three co-accused arrested earlier.

In an amended resolution released Monday afternoon, assistant city prosecutor Rodrigo del Rosario included Abduhadi as among those he is recommending for murder and attempted murder charges.

This means that the suspect, also known by the aliases “Bagwis” and “Angga,” is now facing two non-bailable charges: murder for the death of Domingo last Tuesday and illegal possession of explosives after two grenades were seized from him during his arrest late last Friday.

The bail prescribed by two fiscals for five cases totals P562,000, but Abduhadi cannot walk free because of the two non-bailable offenses.

In his amended resolution, Del Rosario considered Abduhadi, 39, to be have been “lawfully arrested” and that “the evidence is sufficient to hold respondent for trial in court.”

Noting that three of the alleged gunman’s cohorts, including his wife, were arrested shortly after last Tuesday’s killing, the fiscal pointed out that Abduhadi himself was captured in a “continued hot pursuit operation.”

“Hence, it appears that all respondents were lawfully arrested,” the resolution read, adding that the positive identification of the suspects by two witnesses was sufficient to charge them for the Jan. 22 ambush outside the Park Villa Apartelle.

Abduhadi was tagged as the gunman in the  murder of the 51-year-old  mayor of Maconacon after driver Bernard Plasos, 35, pointed to the suspect as the one who shot him in the right thigh.

The QCPD through Chief Insp. Rodelio Marcelo of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit had asked the fiscal to consider Abduhadi’s arrest last Friday night in a bid to have him included among those formally charged for Domingo’s murder.

This was because the inquest proceedings for the murder and attempted murder cases, during which three suspects including the gunman’s wife were charged, were carried out on Thursday night, or a day before Abduhadi was arrested.

Since the alleged gunman was at large at the time of the proceedings, Del Rosario first set the murder and attempted murder cases against Abdubadi for preliminary investigation.

“May we respectfully request from your good office for the amendment of resolution dated Jan. 24 citing the case of respondent Abdubadi for further investigation, to be included and considered arrested,” Marcelo said in a one page letter to del Rosario.

Last week, del Rosario recommended murder, attempted murder, and other court cases against suspects Christian Pajenado, Michael Domingo and Abduhadi’s wife Mary Grace who were arrested between Tuesday night and dawn Wednesday last week in connection with the ambush.

Pajenado and Mary Grace were also charged with illegal possession of firearms and violation of the election gun ban following the recovery of guns in their possession. Mary Grace is also facing drug possession raps.

Following his arrest on Friday night during a pot session inside a shanty at the Salaam Mosque compound in Barangay Culiat, Abduhadi underwent inquest proceedings on Sunday afternoon with his companion Jennifer de Guzman.

Seized from Abduhadi during his arrest last Friday night was an Intratech submachine gun, ammunition, two fragmentation grenades, sachets of shabu and marijuana, and a jacket with police markings on it.

Aside from the illegal possession of explosives case, assistant city prosecutor Gibson Araula Jr. recommended the filing of illegal possession of firearms, drug possession, violation of the election gun ban, and illegal use of police insignia against Abduhadi.

De Guzman yielded shabu paraphernalia. Araula recommended the filing of illegal possession of drug paraphernalia against her with a prescribed bail of P60,000.