Probe cop in teen’s slay, CHR tells Ombudsman

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has referred to the Office of the Ombudsman the case of a 13-year-old boy who, in his dying moments, said he was shot by a Manila policeman.

PO2 Omar Malinao of the Manila Police District’s (MPD) Raxabago station has admitted to shooting Aldrinne Pineda but claimed it was an accident. The incident happened on March 2 inside the Vitas Slaughterhouse in Tondo.

The Inquirer learned from a source that the MPD would file a murder complaint against Malinao today.

CHR special investigator Jun Nalangan on Wednesday said the commission, while looking into the incident for possible human rights violations, had also asked the Ombudsman to look into the criminal and administrative aspects of the case.

The CHR earlier received a complaint-affidavit from Pineda’s mother, Michelle, along with a sworn statement from Pineda’s 13-year old friend Nano (not his real name).

According to Michelle, she was at home around 7:30 p.m. on March 2 when she heard gunshots and saw her son outside clutching the side of his body. The Pinedas live just meters away from the slaughterhouse.

Pineda, a Grade 6 pupil, was taken to the hospital for a bullet wound in the stomach. Before he died the following day, he was able to tell his father that a policeman had shot him.

In his statement, Nano said he and Pineda were among a group of people who entered the slaughterhouse to gather scrap metal.

A man “whose face was covered” scolded them, he recalled.

They then teased the man, telling him, “We’re over here!”

The man drew a gun and fired, causing the children to flee, the boy said.

Malinao remains in MPD custody. —With a report from Aie Balagtas See