Courtesy of QCPD
One of the 10 people linked to the fatal mauling of a 28-year-old overseas Filipino worker in Quezon City on March 4 has come forward and identified her companions.
Chief Supt. Guillermo Eleazar, Quezon City Police District (QCPD) director, said on Thursday that the potential witness, whom he did not identify, voluntarily surfaced on Wednesday night because she wanted to clear her name.
In a sworn statement, the 20-year-old student of San Sebastian College identified the primary suspect as Mohammad “Pits” Marzan Piti-Ilan, a student of National University in Manila. He was earlier named as “Fitz Mohammed.”
Aside from Piti-Ilan, the others in the group were also college students. They were identified as Cyril Angelo Rada and Earl Brian Grande, both of University of the East-Manila; Jameel Haron Benito of STI College, Manila; Angelo Mark Morata; Patricia Dianne Marquez and Joliena Talaman of San Beda College Manila; Glory Mar Suba and Allyssa Ashley Garganta.
According to the woman, she and Piti-Ilan had many mutual friends.
Eleazar, meanwhile, urged the other people named by the potential witness to surface and give their side on the fatal mauling of Abigail Gino Basas, an Australia-based photographer for a cruise ship. Otherwise, they could end up being charged with murder, he said.
Basas and his two companions were beaten up by some members of the group after they left Perfect Spot Bar and Billiards on Dr. Lazcano Street, Quezon City, around 3 a.m. on March 4.
While his two friends sustained injuries, Basas died at a nearby hospital at 4:15 a.m. An autopsy showed that he died after he sustained a hematoma (clotted blood in a tissue due to a broken blood vessel).
The witness said that on Friday night, they had drinks at the restaurant-bar. A member of the group would later post a picture of them together.
Photo Courtesy of QCPD.
Footage from closed-circuit television cameras in the establishment showed that Basas and Piti-Ilan bumped each other at the billiards area. The suspect who seemed drunk was apparently irked as he followed the victim outside the establishment.
“Pits called our group and the rest of us followed him,” the witness told the police, adding that she saw Piti-Ilan punch Basas at a vacant lot near the bar.
“Basas was already headed for the driver’s seat [of his car] when I saw Piti-Ilan punch the back of his head,” she said. But she claimed she did not see what happened next as she was distracted by Talaman who lost her balance and fell.
She told the police that the mauling took place just three meters away from where she was standing.
The QCPD said a blow to the chin knocked down Basas but one of his companions claimed that the suspects continued kicking and punching the victim after he fell to the ground.