Garbo orders probe on mall death

Police Regional Office 7 director, Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo ordered a special section to investigate the security guards involved in the death of a man who was falsely accused of shoplifting in a Cebu City mall.

“I have directed Senior Supt. Derilo (Supt. Rex Derilo) to look into the matter,” said Garbo.

Derilo is the chief of Firearms Explosives Security and Guards Supervisory Section (Fesags) that regulates security guard agencies.

Derilo will look into the administrative liability of the security guards as well as help prosecute them criminally.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), whose autopsy showed the man died of “traumatic neck injuries”, said they have identified the suspects in the death of Mario Alfie Dacuyag.

Dacuyag, whose body showed bruises on his chest and back as well as a collapsed lung, was allegedly mauled while being investigated by security guards of Gaisano Metro in downtown Cebu City last April 12.

NBI Regional Director Antonio Pagatpat said they are still withholding identifies of suspects pending further investigation.

Gaisano Metro uses two security agencies – Golden Sun Investigation and Security Agency and Negrense Security Agency.

Pagatpat said the police will look into all aspects.

“Titingan natin kung wala sa civil aspect, titingnan natin ang criminal aspect,” he said.

(We will see if there’s no civil aspect, we will look into criminal liability.)

The management of Gaisano Metro said it will cooperate with the investigation.

Cerwin Eviota, spokesman of Gaisano Metro ,said they will cooperate with the NBI investigation and enjoined the security agencies to also cooperate.

The management offered financial assistance to Dacuyag’s family but was refused.

Dacuyag was accosted by mall security after he failed to show the receipt of a pair of sandals he bought.

The single father had just bought baby diapers, biscuits, and milk.

One of the security guards Margie Gaser, who is one of those under investigation, recounted to the NBI that plainclothes mall detectives placed Dacuyag under custody on suspicion of shoplifting for failure to show a receipt of the sandals.

CCTV footage showed Dacuyag being brought to the mall’s investigation office.

It later showed him being attended to by paramedics.

A police autopsy said the man died of “asphyxia due to pulmonary tuberculosis” but the victim’s family didn’t believe it because Dacuyag was not ill.

An autopsy by the NBI 7 showed that Dacuyag did not die of natural causes.