This, amid reports that the suspects are now being coddled by a relative who is a ranking police officer in Central Luzon.
The Gerona police identified the cops now facing the charges before the Ombudsman as Inspector Joel Natalicio Gamboa, PO3 Domingo Pascua, PO2 Joseph Nunag, PO2 Johannes Niegos, PO3 Ronald Ramos and PO3 Levy Santos, all from the Gerona town police station.
The complainants were James Dela Cruz, Michael Dela Cruz and Aljhon Tulabot who were arrested by the cops on July 22 last year, based on a complaint of a second year high school student who said she was forcibly abducted at gun-point and repeatedly raped overnight by the three suspects in Gerona.
The three rape suspects filed the arbitrary detention and grave misconduct against the cops, and then went into hiding.
Gamboa expressed dismay over the Ombudsman cases, saying “We only acted on the personal complaint reported to us and the rape victim positively identified the suspects that’s why we immediately arrested them.”
“How come we are facing an Ombudsman case while they remain fugitive of the law? This is harassment,” said Gamboa who led the arresting police team which nabbed the three suspects in their residences in Barangay Caturay in Gerona on July 22 last year. Gamboa noted the rape suspects underwent inquest proceedings before the Tarlac Provincial Prosecutors Office but they filed a waiver for their continued detention and availed themselves of an accused right to preliminary investigation.
While detained at this town’s police station pending the preliminary investigation, the suspects’ parents filed in court a petition for habeas corpus alleging that their arrests were unlawful.
Gamboa said only one hearing was held on the petition at the Tarlac Regional Trial Court Branch 65 presided by Judge Maria Magdalena Balderama where the police’s counsel Ferdinand Miclat was ordered to submit a written comment on the petition for habeas corpus.
A few days later, the court granted the suspects’ petition and ordered their release on August 15.
Apparently, the court’s decision to release the suspects was primarily due to the failure of Miclat to submit a written comment on the petition.
Miclat is Gerona’s legal counsel who was ordered by Mayor Dennis Norma Go to assist the police on the petition for habeas corpus filed by the suspects.
Gamboa, noted, however, that a couple of months after the suspects were released from detention, the provincial prosecutor concluded the preliminary investigation on therape case and subsequently the Tarlac Regional Trial Court Branch 63 issued the warrant of arrest against the three.
The suspected rapists, however, have remained at large and are the subject of a nationwide police manhunt.
“It is very unfortunate that our good and capable policemen who were able to lawfully arrest the rape suspects are being made to suffer after simply doing their job,” said Gerona police chief Supt. Ariel Rebancos Red.
Red noted that the Ombudsman complaint was filed only last Dec. 15, after a warrant of arrest was issued against the suspects.
“We will not be cowed by any form of harassment. We will continue to uphold the law and arrest criminals whoever they are, whomever they are related to,” said Red.
