NBI medico-legal report belies Matobato’s torture claim

Edgar Matobato. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / RICHARD A. REYES

Contrary to the claim of confessed Davao Death Squad (DDS) member Edgar Matobato, a medico-legal report from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) did not show that he was tortured in 2014.

Matobato, in his testimony before the Senate committee on justice, said he was tortured in front of his wife and relatives after he refused to take sole responsibility for the death of Richard King, owner of the Crown Regency Group of Hotels.

A resolution from the Department of Justice (DOJ) cited an NBI Medico-Legal report in dismissing a case for violation of Republic Act 9745 or the Anti-Torture Act against Senior Superintendent Vicente Danao Jr. and Senior Police Officer 1 (SPO1) Reynanto Medina.

Matobato was only able to file the case against the police officers a year after he was allegedly tortured.

However, based on the NBI Medico-Legal Report, its “Raciologic Report of Chest” yielded negative of injuries.

Matobato, in his complaint, said a bone in his chest was broken as a result of the torture.

“It was not stated in the Laboratory Examination Results that there is a broken bone in his chest or at least a finding of a trace of a healing bone or healed bone in his chest to support his claim,” the DOJ resolution stated quoting the NBI Medico-legal report.

It added that there was also no finding that Matobato lost much of his ability to hear from his right ear.

On his claim that there was a witness while he was being tortured, the DOJ resolution dated June 30, 2016 noted that the statement of Joselita Abarquez was just hearsay and inadmissible in evidence because she has no personal knowledge of the incident.

Abarquez in his affidavit said she visited Matobato on June 20, 2014, “another visit could have given her the opportunity to see complainant Matobato’s physical condition from June 20-26.”

“Her knowledge, at most, is limited to the fact of detention of complainant Matobato,” the DOJ resolution stated.

In the same resolution, the DOJ also dismissed the case for violation of RA 7438 or the act defining the rights of a person arrested, detained or under custodial investigation and arbitrary detention against Senior Police Officerss 2 Rizalino Aquino and Bienvenido Furog and SPO4 Arthur Lascañas.

The DOJ said that while Matobato claimed that he was illegally arrested and detained, “evidence, including a copy of an excerpt from the daily records of the Investigation and Detective Management Branch of the Davao City Police Office, were presented by respondent police officers that he was arrested for violation of RA No. 10591, also known as he “Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulations Act.”