Suspected Abu Sayyaf man Saad Samad Kimir, alyas Abu Saad, was arrested in Tubigon, Bohol, on May 4, 2017. A .45-gun, two magazines and a cellphone were seized from Saad. (Photo contributed to the Inquirer Visayas)
CEBU CITY—The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) in Central Visayas had prepared to commend the police for arresting an Abu Sayyaf member in Bohol on Thursday alive.
But after the killing of Saad Samad Kiram, alias Abu Saad, during an alleged attempt to escape his police escorts, the CHR regional office is now prepared to investigate police.
The twist took place after Arvin Odron, CHR regional director, said he found police statements that Saad tried to escape when he was killed “suspicious.”
“The person was already arrested, and yet why did he die?” Odron said.
“That is death in the hands of a law enforcement body or the government—the same entity which is supposed to serve and protect its people regardless of status, whether criminal or not,” Odron added.
Opportunity to escape
Kiram, Odron said, “was a suspected terrorist.”
“Police should know that he, at any time, might escape or fight back. They should not have given him the opportunity to escape,” he said.
He said he would discuss Kiram’s case with CHR chair Chito Gascon.
The CHR regional office started to collect information surrounding the death of
Kiram.
Odron said his office would also coordinate with the National Bureau of Investigation for an autopsy on Kiram’s body.
“We will determine whether or not he was shot at close range,” Odron said.
Regional CHR investigators were in Bohol on Friday to secure copies of police reports on Kiram’s killing.
Kiram had been part of a group of Abu Sayyaf members who tried to set up base in Bohol province.
He had been arrested in the village of Tanawan in Tubigon town on Thursday after he was tipped off to police by a resident who fed him.
After he was interrogated at the Bohol provincial police office around 2 p.m. on Friday, Kiram was transported to the Bohol District Jail where he was supposed to be detained as a high-risk suspect.
He was inside a van with three escorts. When they reached Cabawan District, about 300 meters from the Bohol District Jail, Kiram sought permission to defecate in a grassy area. Police claimed Kiram ran off, instead.
Highly questionable
When cornered, Kiram allegedly engaged the policemen in a fist fight and was shot in the leg, chest and middle of the forehead.
Odron said the circumstances surrounding Kiram’s death were highly questionable.
“If he were to defecate, the police should have dropped by the nearest police station. What happened creates a thinking that he (Kiram) was asked to run and then he was shot,” he said.
Odron said he believed police higher-ups may have given instructions to kill Kiram.
He refused to elaborate while an investigation was being conducted.
“The CHR just has to do its mandate to monitor compliance with government standards. Please don’t blame the CHR if we have to step in. A person under police custody should be safe,” Odron said.