The Philippine National Police in Negros Oriental and the local office of the National Bureau of Investigation on Friday filed a frustrated murder charge against eight suspects in the attempted killing of Bayawan City Councilor Victoriano Alabastro last June.
Charged were Jasper Tanasan, Jasper Sulaiman, Arnulfo Teves, Pacito Libron, Alex Mayagma, Remy Deocares, Herman Escora. Rio Siason, and Jomar Nicor.
Siason and Nicor are residents of Basay, Negros Oriental while the other suspects are from Bayawan City.
The breakthrough in the Alabastro case came after Escora, one of the suspects in an alleged plot to kill Gov. Roel Degamo, gave vital information that led to the filing of the complaint on Friday.
Escora, during an interview with reporters, disclosed that he was the alleged team leader of the group that was purportedly hired by a certain Arnie Teves for a contract fee of P200,000 for the Alabastro hit.
Escora had admitted that he was part of the group who attempted to kill the councilor last June 24 inside the Negros Oriental State University in the boundary of Sta. Catalina and Bayawan, and had identified his companions and “those that ordered the assassination of Alabastro”, said Sr. Supt. Carranza.
A previous botched assassination of Alabastro was also reported last December 2010.
Escora, who issued an extrajudicial confession before Provincial Prosecutor Diosdado Hermosa, is seeking to be enrolled under the Department of Justice’s witness protection program after he signified his intent to turn state witness, Carranza said.
Media reports immediately hitting the air waves late Friday dwelt on the identity of one of the suspects, and the alleged mastermind Arnulfo “Arnie” Teves, as the same person now sitting as member of the Provincial Board.
Efforts to reach Teves were futile at press time even as some journalists coursed their request for a reaction from him through a known contact.
Atty. Victorino Alabastro, who was also present during the filing of the case, said that while he withheld some information regarding the two attempts on his life during previous investigations, he said his suspicions regarding the supposed mastermind has now been confirmed by Escora’s revelations.
Alabastro said he could not speculate on the motive behind the plot to kill him and that he had no personal quarrel with Arnie (Teves), but on several previous occasions, he received reports that the latter had some axe to grind against him, which was mostly job-related. Alabastro served as city legal officer prior to being elected as councilor of Bayawan City.
Reached for comment, Rep. Pryde Henry Teves said he has advised his brother to take these accusations seriously, even though it is not true. “I told him to get a good lawyer and not to forget to pray because that has always been our source of strength,” Rep. Teves told the Dumaguete MetroPost.
Meanwhile, Atty. Dominador Cimafranca Jr., agent-in-charge of the NBI local office and head of Task Force Enigma, said that they will continue their fact-finding investigation on the Alabastro case despite the filing of a case against the respondents on Friday.
Meanwhile, the suspects in the alleged attempt to assassinate Governor Degamo revealed on Friday that they were hired to kill a coordinator of the state-run numbers game Bingo Milyunaryo in Bonawon, Siaton, who happens to be the neighbor of the provincial chief executive.
At the time of the suspects’ arrest, police had reported that they were investigating the possible involvement of the two in a plot to kill the governor.
Herman Escora and Anthony Luterio told newsmen before their scheduled preliminary investigation Friday before assistant provincial prosecutor Constantino Trinidad that they were hired allegedly by a certain Bobong Tanasan of Bayawan City, Negros Oriental, to liquidate Mauricio Sioco, for a contract fee of P100,000.
Both Escora and Luterio said the firearms confiscated from their possession, an Ingram machine pistol, a .45 caliber pistol and two hand grenades were provided by Tanasan. They further explained the governor’s residence was in the sketch that was recovered from them because there is no other landmark in the area. It was made as a reference point for them to seek out Sioco.
Escora shed tears when he told newsmen his wife and three children were missing only this week after visiting him at his detention cell at the provincial headquarters of the Philippine National Police. It was confirmed by police deputy director for operations Supt. Alet Virtucio that Escora’s family is indeed missing and the police are tracing their whereabouts.
Escora identified a certain Pacito Libron as the possible person who would have knowledge as to the whereabouts of his three kids, aged 10, 8 and 6, and his wife, Elvira.
According to him, both Tanasan and Libron are known to each other. Escora had earlier identified who the mastermind is in the plot to kill Sioco, but in the absence of a legal counsel, the alleged mastermind’s name has been withheld.
The two suspects had cooperated with the police, saying that even if they did not, their lives would still be in danger. They refuted earlier pronouncements by Rep. Pryde Henry Teves of the 3rd district of negros Oriental who said he believes the firearms recovered from the suspects were planted and were tampered. (PNA/ JFP/Juancho Gallarde)
