Lozano suspects bribery in criminal case downgrade

Marcos lawyer Oliver Lozano has indicated that money could be behind the delay and downgrade of the criminal case filed against the alleged leaders and members of the Dominguez car theft syndicate believed to be involved in the grisly murder of his son.

In his petition for amplification of his motion, Lozano described the July 7 resolution issued by Assistant State Prosecutors Amor Robles, Eden Wakay-Valdez and Bernardo Fernandez as “illegal, unjust and despotic.”

He said he and his family believed the resolution “was purchased.”

“We believe that you were allegedly bribed P50 million to unduly delay the resolution, downgrade (the case) and recommend San Fernando, Pampanga, as venue (of the trial),” Lozano said.

Lozano, however, could not offer proof of the alleged bribery.

“Your malicious and malevolent malfeasance is outrageous and odious. You appear as lambs, but you are betrayed by your profitable resolution,” he stressed, describing the prosecutors as “wolves feasting on dead fish.”

In a motion for reconsideration, Lozano asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to revise the car theft with homicide case that the state prosecutors had recommended against brothers Raymond and Roger Dominguez and four of their alleged cohorts in connection with the killing of his son Emerson.

Instead, Lozano said a more serious complaint of car theft with murder should be lodged against the suspects. He said the case should also be filed in Quezon City and not in San Fernando, Pampanga.

“The ruthless killing must not be callously downgraded to homicide vis-a-vis the heavily grieving complainants and arrogantly gloating respondents in order to avoid the ignominious perception that there is dough in downgrading,” Lozano said in his three-page petition.

He added: “Homicide is lesser than murder. That is elementary. Downgrading (car theft) with murder to (car theft) with homicide abets the former.”

According to Lozano, the Dominguez brothers and their co-accused clearly committed murder when they “outraged and scoffed” at the cadaver of his son “by unnecessarily burning” it.

The charred bodies of Emerson, a car dealer, and his driver Ernanie Sencil were recovered separately in Pampanga and Bataan, respectively, on Jan. 12 a few days after they supposedly met with Alfred Mendiola, a self-confessed syndicate member-turned-state witness.

In their 17-page resolution, the prosecutors said a case for car theft with homicide was the “more appropriate charge” against the accused since “nothing on record would show Emerson and Ernanie were killed.”

“Neither is any circumstance established that would qualify the killing to murder,” they said. “Where treachery is not adequately proved, the appellant can only be convicted of homicide.”

Aside from the Dominguez brothers, also indicted were Jayson Miranda, Roland Talban, Napoleon Salamat and a certain Marlon.