Kin of victims of drug war seek CA help

Families of several victims of President Duterte’s war on drugs on Monday asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to order the Philippine National Police and the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) to investigate the dumping of corpses near their homes earlier this month to determine whether this was carried out by the same policemen they had haled to court.

In a manifestation, Efren Morillo and his parents Martino and Victoria, Ma. Belen Daa, Marla Daa, Maribeth Bartolay, Lydia Gavo, Jennifer Nicolas and Marilyn Malimban said that the dumping of two bodies on Payatas Road on March 12 had caused them “immense fear and worry.”

“Petitioners initially felt a certain measure of security from the grant of a permanent protection order of this honorable court, and thus decided to proceed with the filing of their cases.

“However, the described incident has caused them to feel a renewed sense of fear for their lives and security. To them, the dumping of the bodies seemed like a message sent to them to stop them from pursuing their charges,” the petition read.

Morillo earlier filed in the Office of the Ombudsman charges of multiple murder, frustrated murder, robbery, planting of drugs and planting of evidence, and administrative charges of grave misconduct against Senior Insp. Emil Garcia, PO3 Allan Formilleza, PO1 James Aggarao and PO1 Melchor Navisaga and their civilian informants.

The other complainants also filed administrative charges against the policemen who conducted a drug raid in Barangay Payatas on Aug. 21 last year.

Based on their affidavits, their kin were killed “execution style” by the lawmen from the Batasan station of the QCPD.