Cops accused in Maguindanao massacre case fail to get raps dropped

A Quezon City court has ordered the arraignment of a police officer and two others in the Maguindanao massacre case after finding their appeal to have the charges against them dropped to be without merit.

Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of Regional Trial Court Branch 221 set the arraignment of Superintendent Bahnarin Kamaong, Police Officer 1 Sandy Sabang and civilian Armando Ambalgan for November 16 at 9 a.m.

This after the court denied Kamaong and Sabang’s motion for reconsideration and Ambalgan’s motion for judicial determination of probable cause, both for lack of merit.

The three accused, in separate pleadings, asked the court to dismiss the multiple murder charges against them in connection with the Nov. 23, 2009, massacre of 57 people in Ampatuan, Maguindanao.

In seeking the dismissal, the two police officers said they were not positively identified as being at the crime scene and that no proof of a conspiracy existed.

They said their names were not on the list of policemen who were alleged to have been with the principal accused, Andal Ampatuan Jr., when the latter arrived at Sitio Masalang in Ampatuan town on the day of the crime.

The court noted that because of the magnitude of the crime and the allegation of conspiracy, the claims of the accused were evidentiary matters that should be presented and heard during the trial.

“At this stage, what the court is merely determining is the probability and not the certainty of the commission of the offenses charged. Thus, a detailed discussion of the other issues raised by the accused is no longer necessary,” Reyes said.

The three accused are among the 196 persons charged with multiple murder for the killing of 57 people, including 32 media workers, allegedly on orders of Ampatuan in the worst election-related killing in the country’s history. Julie M. Aurelio