Dying man’s statement on QC ‘hack attack’ leads to murder case vs neighbor

A 35-year-old printing shop operator was charged the other day in the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office with murder and frustrated murder after he attacked his neighbors with a bolo, leaving one dead and another badly injured.

Based on the statement given by one of the victims before he passed away, Assistant City Prosecutor Edwin Valdez pushed for the filing in court of the charges against Jerry Destajo, a resident of Bicol Compound in Kingspoint Subdivision, Novaliches, Quezon City.

Based on court records, Destajo attacked with a bolo on Friday morning 53-year-old Reynaldo Corpuz and his 22-year-old son Alvin Corpuz.

The older Corpuz was able to identify Destajo as the one who went after him and his son in a sworn statement he gave to responding operatives of the Quezon City Police District’s Novaliches station several hours before he succumbed to his injuries. His son, on the other hand, remains confined at Novaliches District Hospital.

Destajo was arrested while seeking treatment at a hospital after he himself was hacked on the head by the older Corpuz who, despite his wounds, managed to wrest away the bolo from the suspect.

The assistant city prosecutor recommended no bail for Destajo on the murder charge and bail of P200,000 on the frustrated murder case.

SPO1 Pascual Fabreag of the QCPD’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit said the hacking incident happened at 8 a.m. on Friday outside the Corpuzes’ house.

According to Fabreag, father and son were busy fixing a motorcycle when Destajo, armed with a jungle bolo, suddenly went after them.

Destajo’s relatives later arrived and pacified him. The three men were taken to Bernardino Hospital.

Fabreag said that according to the victims’ family, Destajo’s attack could have been prompted by a grave threat complaint they filed against him last year.

He added that the elder Corpuz managed to give a sworn statement to Novaliches police station personnel PO3 Fernando Tanghay and PO3 Mark Evaristo before his transfer to Quezon City General Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival around 1:30 p.m. on Friday.

Destajo, on the other hand, remains under hospital arrest following his transfer to Quezon City General Hospital.