VIII. Targeted Killings

 

The following cases, involving 28 targeted killings, were documented by Human Rights Watch during our research in Davao City, General Santos City, and Digos City in July 2008.

Davao City

Jaypee Larosa, 20, killed on July 17, 2008

Jaypee Larosa, 20, had no criminal record and lived in Lanang, a quiet residential neighborhood in Davao.[59]

At around 6 p.m. on July 17, 2008, Larosa left home, saying he was going to a neighborhood Internet cafe. A relative told Human Rights Watch that at around 7 p.m. the family heard six gunshots. A neighbor then rushed to their house and said that the “twin” had been shot, which the family immediately realized meant Jaypee, as he had a twin brother.

Family members rushed to the Internet cafe, and found Larosa with several bullet wounds in front of the cafe. They took him to a hospital, but he was declared dead on arrival.

According to family members, eyewitnesses told them that Larosa had been shot by three men wearing black and dark blue jackets who arrived on a Honda Wave motorcycle. After they shot him, one of them removed the baseball cap Larosa was wearing, and said, “Son of a bitch. This is not the one,” and they immediately left the scene. The police recovered an empty cartridge from a 9-mm handgun.

The family believes that Larosa was mistaken for someone else.

Shortly before the killing, the family had heard that some twin brothers had committed a robbery in the neighborhood where they used to live. A police officer had mentioned to members of the community the names of the Larosa brothers as potential suspects.

Convinced that the Larosa brothers could not have been involved in the robbery, the family confronted the police officer. On July 15, the police officer filed a libel complaint against the family. On July 16, the Larosa family filed a counter-complaint. The following day, Larosa was killed.[60]

Adon Mandagit, 15, killed in July 2007

Adon Mandagit, 15, used to live in Calinan, south of Davao City, with his family. Several years before he was killed, local police arrested Adon and beat him once for sniffing “rugby” (an industrial solvent commonly used by Filipino youth as an intoxicant) and for an alleged theft. “Ricardo,” a close friend of the Mandagit family, told Human Rights Watch that Adon’s mother then filed a complaint against a Calinan Police Precinct policeman for mistreating her son. As a result, the policeman was removed from the station and the police paid damages to the Mandagit family.[61]

According to Ricardo, after the incident, the Calinan police warned Adon’s mother that unless her son changed his behavior, “Something may happen to him.” The mother then asked Ricardo to take her son to Davao City, and Adon moved there in early 2007.

In Davao City, Adon started working with Ricardo as an informal car washer in the Bolton area of the city.

Ricardo told Human Rights Watch that they were always together, and he tried to keep an eye on Adon, fearing for his safety. Adon’s mother told him that some “men on motorcycles” were looking for Adon in Calinan, coming to the house, and asking the mother for his whereabouts.

In July 2007, Adon was shot dead in front of Ricardo. Ricardo told Human Rights Watch:

It was around 3 p.m. Adon and I were on Bolton street, washing cars near a Jollibee restaurant. I went to buy cigarettes but the moment I left Adon, I heard gunshots and immediately turned around. I saw two men firing at Adon. One of them, short and heavy-built, was two or three meters away from Adon. I believe he fired the first shot. Adon stumbled, and another, taller man finished him off with another two gunshots.

There were many people in the street—after shooting Adon, the men waived their guns at the crowd, telling people to disperse. Women were shouting, some people hit the ground, and some were running away. I also got scared and hid behind a fruit stand. I could see everything from there.[62]

According to Ricardo, the short man was in jeans and black jacket, and the tall one was wearing jeans, an off-white polo shirt, and a baseball cap. After shooting Adon, the men jumped on a waiting motorcycle and took off. Ricardo noticed that the motorcycle was a DT sports model, and the driver had long hair. The gunmen were armed with .45 caliber handguns.[63]

After the gunmen left, Ricardo approached Adon. The boy was already dead—two wounds were visible in his head (one in his forehead and a second in the back of his head), and another bullet wound in the neck. Ricardo then quickly left the scene, fearing for his own life—Adon’s killing was not the first one in the area and he was afraid he might be targeted as well.

Ricardo believes that Adon might also have been killed because a month before his shooting he had witnessed the murder of another car washer in the same area. As a witness to the killing, Adon was then questioned by the police. He also had given an interview about the murder to a local TV channel.

 

Rolando Jimenes, 50, killed on June 15, 2008

Rolando Jimenes was a retired member of the CAFGU militia and lived in Davao City. In 2003, police arrested him for murder and he served time in prison until July 2007. According to a relative, shortly after his release, Rolando joined the Davao Death Squad and took part in death squad raids along with other members. He did not try to hide his affiliation with the death squad from his family.

On June 15, 2008, Jimenes was drinking with a friend in a bar. An individual present at the bar later told a member of Jimenes’ family that a death squad member, who apparently knew Jimenes, arrived on a motorcycle, came into the bar and told the customers to leave. He then approached Jimenes and shot him several times, first in the side, then in the neck, twice in the head—in the middle of the forehead and in the right cheek—and then in the chest.[64]

After the shooting, the gunman ran out of the bar where an accomplice waited on a motorcycle, and they sped off.

The police arrived at the scene about 30 minutes after the killing and conducted a basic examination of the crime scene, fingerprinting the victim and collecting bullet cartridges. The family did not file a case[65] because, according to the witness interviewed by Human Rights Watch, “They knew about his job and thought it was useless to file.” The witness was not aware of any action taken by the police to further investigate the case.

Nerito Calimbo, 42, killed on May 22, 2008 ; Jocelyn Calimbo, 44, killed on May 22, 2008; Aaron Sumitso, 26, killed on May 22, 2008

Nerito Calimbo, 42, was a self-employed businessman working in the mining industry, and a former New People’s Army fighter who surrendered to the government and was granted amnesty after serving two months in prison. After his surrender, he held different jobs, including as a bodyguard. Jocelyn Calimbo, 44, Nerito’s wife, was a nurse.[66]

A relative of the Calimbos told Human Rights Watch that on May 21, 2008, dozens of members of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) from the Davao City police, armed with .45-caliber handguns and wearing bullet-proof vests, entered the Calimbo residence. They searched the house without a warrant.

The officers took Nerito Calimbo to their office for questioning. They accused him of kidnapping and murder, and of being a leader of a well-known gang. The next day, May 22, he was released on bail.

Calimbo’s wife, Jocelyn, and his brother-in-law, Aaron Sumitso, picked him up at the barracks of the Davao City Police Office. They got into a taxi, which soon stopped because of traffic. Two men on a motorcycle approached them, shot the Calimbos and Aaron Sumitso, and fled from the scene. The taxi driver, who was unharmed, drove them to a hospital, but all three were declared dead on arrival.

The Calimbo family decided not to pursue the case with the police, fearing retribution.

In late May 2008, Chief Inspector Antonio Rivera, chief of the Investigation Division and Management Section of the Davao City police, told journalists that they had released a composite sketch of one of the suspects. Senior Superintendent Jaime Morente reportedly said the San Pedro police were investigating the case, and looking at all possible motives behind the killing. Local media reported that Nerito Calimbo was a suspected leader of a well-known gang called the Chigo Robbery Group.[67]

Before Calimbo was released, CIDG-Southern Mindanao chief Jose Jorge Corpuz allegedly had warned the victim that he was being targeted for assassination, but later clarified that his warning was based on the presumption that Calimbo's enemies would take advantage of his release from CIDG detention.[68]

At this writing in February 2009, the police had not reported the arrest of any suspect in the case.

Conrad Dequina, early 20s, killed on October 10, 2007

Conrad Dequina, in his early 20s, lived in Davao City. According to a friend, he was known to sniff rugby and was a suspect in a murder case. Prior to the killing, a barangay official had warned Dequina’s family that his name was “on the list,” and advised that he leave town.[69]

At around 10 p.m. on October 10, 2007, Dequina was hanging out with friends in his neighborhood, when neighbors heard gunshots. Dequina’s friend, who witnessed the killing, told Human Rights Watch that he saw three men wearing baseball caps and denim jackets.

He said that the assailants shot Dequina six times with what appeared to be .45-caliber handguns. They also shot and killed another man who was standing next to Dequina—possibly by accident.

The friend said that after the shooting, the gunmen drove around for some time, as if looking for someone else, but left just before the police arrived. He told Human Rights Watch:

Nobody said anything, because they were all afraid. The police asked who the victim was, and laughed as if they liked what they saw. They didn’t talk to any of the witnesses. And then they left, leaving behind the body and empty shells. They didn’t do anything. They didn’t seem to care about any evidence.

The friend does not believe the police followed up on the case.

With regard to the other victim, the friend said:

We knew the second guy was a mistake, because his name was not on the list. Everybody knew whose names were on the list. I have not seen the list, but a barangay official had the names on a piece of paper, and carried it when he visited each house to inform the families.

Dequina’s friend said that three other friends of his were killed in the neighborhood between June and July 2008. He said that they were gang members and all had received warnings before the killings. All three were killed in the same manner as Dequina, and he knew of no police follow-up on any of the cases.

Jumael Maunte, 24, killed in August 2007; Cyrus Gitacaras, age unknown, killed in August 2007

On August 12, 2007, Jumael Maunte and Cyrus Gitacaras went missing. On August 16, Maunte’s family saw on the TV news that two bodies had been found in Mawab, Davao del Norte, about 90 kilometers northeast of Davao City. Maunte’s mother went to the funeral parlor and identified one of the bodies as her son’s. The body bore many bruises, a large blackened wound in the head, and three gunshot wounds in the chest. The wrists and ankles were tied with thin metal wire. The family, who are Muslims, immediately buried the body.[70]

The second body belonged to Cyrus Gitacaras, a friend of Maunte’s. The body, which had been found beside a highway by a jeepney driver, had gunshot wounds to the right eye and the chest, as well as bruises on the head. The wrists and ankles were tied.

According to Maunte’s relative, Gitacaras had a long history of trouble with the law, including theft, drug use, and robbery. He was a suspect in a robbery case, and the authorities had released him from a city jail only five days before he went missing. Neighbors and barangay officials had told him his name was on a “list.” Gitacaras told his friends that a police officer had warned him to watch out or he might be “killed on the street.”

Maunte was a drug user. To the relative’s knowledge, he had never received any warnings that his name was on a list or that his life was in danger. Fearing for his safety, his family told him to avoid Gitacaras, but Maunte would not listen, as they were close friends.

After the discovery of the bodies, Maunte’s family located an individual who had been with Maunte and Gitacaras at the time of their abduction, but had managed to escape. He told the family that on August 12, the three of them were in Butuan City, which is about 220 kilometers northeast of Davao City, when a group of armed men approached them and took the two away.

The police never contacted Maunte’s family about the case. According to Maunte’s relative, when Maunte’s mother asked the police if they had any leads in the case, they said they could not pursue the case because they did not know who was responsible for the killing. The survivor refused to make a statement to the police, as he was scared for his life.

 

Danilo Macasero, early 30s, killed in late May 2007

Danilo Macasero was a known drug dealer. According to a neighbor, a barangay official once told Macasero that his name was on the “list.” Neighbors tried to convince him to stop dealing drugs, but he continued.[71]

Macasero’s neighbor, who witnessed the killing, told Human Rights Watch that in late May 2007, four men wearing baseball caps and jackets arrived in Macasero’s neighborhood on two XRM Honda motorcycles. The men appeared to be staking another known drug dealer’s house, and at around 8 p.m., Macasero walked past them.

One of the men then followed Macasero and stabbed him without warning. Macasero tried to run away, but another assailant caught up with him and stabbed him again. The men stabbed him 12 times in total.

The men then pulled out handguns that, according to Macasero’s neighbor, appeared to be .38-caliber silver pistols, and pointed them to those gathered around. Macasero’s neighbor said that one of them said, “Don’t do anything. You are not part of this.” Another one then kicked Macasero’s face as he lay on the ground, and said, “Don’t follow this guy. He is an addict.”

Macasero’s family took him to a hospital, but he was declared dead on arrival.

Richard Alia, 18, killed on July 21, 2001 ; Christopher Alia, 17, killed on October 20, 2001; Bobby Alia, 14, killed on November 3, 2003; Fernando Alia, 15, killed on April 13, 2007

From July 2001 to April 2007, the four Alia brothers from the Bankerohan area in Davao City fell victim to apparent death squad killings—they were stabbed to death one after another, by unidentified perpetrators.[72]

Richard Alia, 18, was a member of the “Notoryus” gang in Bankerohan and police had arrested him several times for petty crimes. In 2000, he survived a murder attempt when an unidentified perpetrator shot at him.

In early July 2001, the police tried to arrest him again, but his mother resisted. She told Human Rights Watch:

The police from San Pedro police station came to our house to pick him up for an alleged rape, but they didn’t have a warrant. I asked for one, but they didn’t have it and said they didn’t need it. I protested, and then a policeman, who introduced himself as Senior Police Officer [name withheld], told me, “Ok, you don’t want to give your child to me, then watch out because your sons will be killed, one by one!” I was really shocked he mentioned the other sons as they were just little kids then, but he was very angry because I was pushing him out.

On July 17, 2001, at around 4 p.m., Richard left his house to have a drink with a friend. Several hours later, a neighbor, who witnessed the killing, informed his mother that Richard had been stabbed to death. According to Clarita Alia, when she arrived at the scene, Richard was already dead, having sustained a fatal wound on his right side. She was unsure whether police ever opened an investigation into the killing, and she did not try to pursue the case, fearing for the safety of her other children.

Three months later, on October 20, 2001, Richard’s younger brother, Christopher, 17, was also stabbed to death. Clarita Alia said:

When somebody informed me that Christopher had been stabbed, I was startled, shocked—I realized they had started killing my kids one by one. When I got to the market where the killing happened, I saw Christopher being held by his older brother, Arnold. I think that Arnold was probably the target as he is my oldest son. People at the market said that two men were following Arnold that morning, but then apparently lost him and targeted Christopher instead. Christopher suffered one fatal wound in the chest, and had some smaller wounds on his arms—apparently, he was trying to protect himself.

When the police arrived at the scene, they didn’t try to find any witnesses, they just kept asking me, “What happened? Who killed your son?” I was hysterical, and kept telling them, “Why are you asking me? You are the policemen—ask witnesses around here!”

After Christopher’s killing, his mother filed a case with the Commission on Human Rights, but she was not aware of any action taken by the commission. Human Rights Watch sent a letter to the commission with inquiries on the case of the Alia brothers along with some other murder victims in September 2008, and resent the letter a month later, but received no response.

On November 3, 2003, Bobby Alia, 14, was stabbed to death in the Bankerohan market, the same place where Christopher had been killed. Shortly before his killing, police arrested him for allegedly stealing a cell phone. His mother managed to secure his release—she said Bobby complained about police torture as they tried to obtain a confession from him. Two days after he was released, Bobby was stabbed in the back with a butcher’s knife.

This time, witnesses to the incident said they could identify the perpetrator, a known local hitman, allegedly with close ties to the police. Clarita Alia decided not to share this information with the police. “I didn’t tell them,” she said, “Because this person is very close to the police, and the police know full well who the killers of my children were.” She did not know whether the police had investigated Bobby’s killing.

Fearing for the life of her other son, Fernando Alia, Clarita Alia tried to keep him away from Davao City. Fernando attended a boarding school away from Davao City, but, according to Clarita Alia, unidentified people kept approaching Fernando there, saying “He would be next.” In 2006, Fernando returned to Davao, and soon thereafter was arrested for the first time, for sniffing rugby. He survived one murder attempt in November 2006, but unidentified assailants stabbed him to death on April 13, 2007. His mother told Human Rights Watch:

I always kept him at home, never allowed him to go out alone. But that night I was so tired, I went to sleep early and told my daughter to keep an eye on Fernando. But apparently, he told her that he would just go to a neighbor’s house, and she allowed him to leave. Next thing we knew was that he had been stabbed in the morning, by two perpetrators, on a bridge near the market. He did not die on the spot—an ambulance took him to the hospital, and when my daughter got there, the doctors were trying to revive him. But they did not succeed, and several hours later he was pronounced dead.

Clarita Alia said that two minors who allegedly witnessed the killing from a distance were too scared to testify. As with the three other killings, the mother had no information from the police about the progress in the investigation, and to date none of the perpetrators have been arrested.

Jesus Ormido, 18, killed on October 10, 2004 ; Jay-ar Omido, 20, killed on June 1, 2006

Jesus Ormido, 18, was a tricycle dispatcher in Davao City. In the past, he had been jailed for several months for sniffing rugby and stealing cell phones. A barangay official once told Jesus’ grandmother that Jesus should be careful, adding that he would not want anything to happen to ”any of the family members.”[73]

At around 4 p.m. on October 5, 2004, two men wearing black ski masks and black jackets approached Jesus Ormido at the tricycle terminal where he worked. Without warning, they stabbed him once and shot him four times. According to a relative (who had talked to witnesses), the men rode a black-and-white DT-type Yamaha motorcycle. Jesus’ relative said the witnesses heard them saying, “You will not be the last. We will get another in your family.” Police officers were in the vicinity, but they did not chase the assailants. Scene of Crime Operations (SOCO) officers arrived and collected spent bullet casings. The police later told the family that they could not file a case because no witness could describe the gunmen.

Jesus Ormido did not die on the spot, and the police took him to a hospital. His condition stabilized, but five days later, as his family was waiting outside his ward, they were suddenly called in. By the time they arrived at the ward, Jesus was bleeding profusely from his earlier wound. The doctors performed CPR, but were not able to save him.

A patient on the adjacent bed told the family that a big man had come in, wearing a black shirt and a white doctor’s gown with its hem stuck on his waistband on the back side, “as if he put it on hastily.” He squeezed Jesus’ wound until it bled. Jesus kicked around, but he could not yell, because a tube was blocking his airway. After some time, he was still, and did not move again. The police who arrived at the hospital concluded it was murder, but according to the relative, did not follow up with an investigation.

Jesus’ younger brother, Jay-ar Ormido, 20, also worked as a tricycle dispatcher. On June 1, 2006, Jay-ar went to a neighbor’s wake where he met an acquaintance who was a police officer. Jay-ar stayed overnight, but as he was leaving the next morning, the police officer and another man driving a green DT-type motorcycle approached him.

According to Jesus’ relative, an eyewitness said the policeman shot Jay-ar once, without saying anything. Jay-ar fell on the ground, tried to get up and run, but could not. The policeman then shot Jay-ar, who was lying on the ground, five more times. The witness said that the policeman and the other man drove away aboard a motorcycle.

SOCO officers recovered spent bullet casings from the crime scene, examined the wounds and talked to witnesses. They also took Jay-ar’s body to a funeral parlor.

After learning from a witness that the police officer had been on the motorcycle with the other assailant, Jay-ar’s family filed a complaint against the police officer, only to discover that he was no longer in service and had left Davao City. The family was unaware of any further action being taken in the case.

Rodolfo More, Jr., 22, killed on November 20, 2005

Rodolfo More, Jr. lived in a neighborhood in the Agdao district in Davao City known as Barrio Patay (“Place of Death”), because of the numerous killings that have occurred there over many years.[74]

According to a relative, More’s family heard that he had been “on the list.” On November 20, 2005, More was arrested for trespassing and theft—it was his third arrest. On the afternoon of November 22, a relative picked him up at the Santa Ana police station in Davao. They got in a jeepney a few meters away from the station. The relative sat with her back against him, and turned around when she suddenly heard his scream. Rodolfo was lying on the bench of the jeepney. More had been stabbed in the chest. She saw a man jump out and walk away, as if nothing had happened. The driver seemed too shocked to stop the vehicle, and since More’s relative was also in shock, and didn’t know what to do, she just asked the driver to take them home.

When they arrived at More’s home, his father took him to a hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. To the family’s knowledge, the police did not investigate the case. The More family did not go to the police as they were concerned they would have to pay to file a complaint and could not afford it.

Kim “Keno” Garcia, 20, killed on November 11, 2005

Kim “Keno” Garcia had been a gang member in Davao City since he was 13-years-old. He was jailed several times for theft, rugby sniffing, and other petty crimes. According to Garcia’s friend, who learned of the details of the killing from an eyewitness, on November 11, 2005, Garcia was waiting for a friend in front of a convenience store when two men on a motorcycle approached him and stabbed him to death. Garcia sustained 14 stab wounds. Prior to the killing, he had once left the city after receiving an anonymous warning. The friend told Human Rights Watch:

In 2004, he received a letter warning him that unless he left, he would be killed. He came back in June 2005 because he wanted to be with his gang. He was handed over to the police by a village watchman shortly after his return. The police asked, “It’s you again? Weren’t you warned already and haven’t you left the place?!”

That’s why we concluded that there was some cooperation between the DDS and the police. Of course, it wasn’t the police that warned him, but they knew about it very well.[75]

Garcia’s friend did not know whether the police ever opened an investigation into the killing.

Romeo Jaca, 17, killed on May 26, 2003

Romeo Jaca, 17, was a leader of a youth gang with several dozen members. The gang members drank and used drugs together, were involved in theft and prostitution, and fought with rival youth gangs. A few months before Jaca’s killing, his mother heard that the barangay office was collecting the names of gang members. She tried to convince him and his older brother to leave the neighborhood.[76]

According to Romeo’s relative who learned the circumstances of the killing from eyewitnesses, late at night on May 26, 2003, a neighbor told Jaca that an official with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency wanted to see him. Jaca left home to meet the official, walked past a small alley, and stopped in the middle of the street when he saw someone standing on the other side. He then turned and ran back into the alley but the assailant followed, shooting him while three other men cornered him. He was shot three times, in the head, back, and leg. The gunman and three others fled immediately. Two of them rode in a white van without a license plate. The other two drove a DT-type off-road motorcycle with no license plate.

The police later told the family the cause of death was a gunshot wound in the head inflicted by a .45-caliber handgun. But, according to Jaca’s relative, the family did not file a case and the police did not follow up with any further investigation. The relative said:

A lot of killings happen, but nothing gets resolved. Nobody gets convicted. There is no point in filing a case [complaint]. If we filed a case, we are afraid other men in the family would be targeted next.

General Santos City

Danilo Auges, 38, killed on May 26, 2008; Aldrin Alba, 22, killed on June 10, 2008; Dodon Borga, 17, killed in July 2008; “Kawalyan,” 20, killed in July 2008

Danilo Auges, a construction worker in General Santos City, was a drug user who used to hang out with local drug dealers. His relatives said that he had been arrested once for stealing a cell phone, but released once the phone was returned to the owner. They said that he did not deal drugs himself, although the media tried to portray him this way after the killing.[77]

On May 26, 2008, Auges was grilling fish in the yard of his house with a friend and a nephew. At around 4:30 p.m., a relative of Auges’ came home. She told Human Rights Watch:

I went into the house, and when I came back into the yard some time later, I saw Danilo face-to-face with a gunman. The gunman had dark skin and long hair, and was wearing basketball shorts and a loose T-shirt. I saw his companion on a motorcycle parked a couple of meters away—it was a black XRM motorcycle, and the driver was wearing a military hat.

The gunman, who had a pistol in his hand, was asking Danilo about some other man, Jon-Jon. I came forward and said that there was no one with such name in our block. But the gunman didn’t leave. Danilo apparently sensed that something was wrong and tried to get inside the house, but at that moment the gunman shot him. He first shot him in the back, and then, when Danilo fell on the ground, the gunman kneeled next to him and shot him twice more, in the head, behind both ears.

I was in shock, and just kept shouting, “Dan! Dan! Dan!”

The gunman then jumped on the motorcycle that pulled by and they drove away.

According to the relatives, the police did not arrive until about 30 minutes after the killing even though the police station is located very close to the house and neighbors immediately reported the incident to them. Auges’ relatives provided the police with a description of the gunman. A Scene of the Crime Operatives team took pictures of the crime scene, collected Auges’ fingerprints, and retrieved one of the cartridges, telling the family that the bullet was from a .45 caliber handgun.

At the time they spoke to Human Rights Watch, the relatives were not aware of any progress in the investigation and were scared to inquire with the police, fearing retribution.

Shortly after Auges’ killing, at least three of his close acquaintances also became victims of apparent death squad killings.

According to Auges’ relatives, shortly after her brother’s killing, the family of his friend Aldrin Alba received a text message on a cell phone, which read, “The person who receives this message will be the next one to be killed after Danilo.”

Aldrin Alba was killed on June 10, 2008. Three armed men arrived at Alba’s house on a motorcycle. They first shot him in the legs and then shot at him four more times as he was trying to run out to the street.

Two other friends of Auges’, Dodon Borga and “Kawalyan,” were shot dead in a similar manner in the first week of July 2008. Auges’ relatives told Human Rights Watch that after her brother and Alba were killed, the two men fled the town and went into hiding. However, their families later said that armed men on motorcycles found Borga and Kawalyan and shot them both dead.

Gabriel Sintasas, 24, killed on March 19, 2008

The family of Gabriel Sintasas, a charcoal trader from General Santos City, shared a house with his cousin, Frederick Lanuy. In January 2008, the neighbors told Sintasas’ family that several men on a motorcycle had started coming to the neighborhood looking for Lanuy, who then left town and went into hiding.[78]

In March 2008, Sintasas and his pregnant wife moved to her mother’s house so that the mother could look after the wife.

At around 7 a.m. on March 19, 2008, the family was having breakfast. Gabriel, who finished his meal first, went out to the street and stood near a fence. Almost immediately, an unidentified perpetrator shot him dead. The family believes he was mistaken for Lanuy, whom he resembles. His mother described the incident to Human Rights Watch:

I went outside after him. He was outside with his two-year-old son, helping the child put his shoes on. I turned for a second to go back to the house, but I just made two steps when I heard gunshots. When I turned around, I saw a man holding a gun directed at Gabriel—he was lying on the ground, and my grandson was standing next to him.

The man with a gun was about 25-years-old, handsome, and was wearing a blue baseball cap, blue shorts, and a jacket. I cried, “You idiot! This is not Eko [Frederick’s nickname]! You got the wrong man!” I knew that these people were looking for Frederick—they just mistook my son for him! The killer didn’t say anything in response, but he looked at Gabriel in shock, apparently realizing he’s made a mistake.

There was a motorcycle parked some eight meters away. It was a blue XRM, and the driver was wearing a black jacket, black pants, and a black helmet with white stripes. He pulled over and urged the killer to get away.

Gabriel was still alive when I approached him. He tried to speak and his eyelashes were fluttering. But he was turning pale very fast. There was a bullet wound behind his ear. Just one. But there was a lot of blood.

We were trying to ask the child what happened to his father, but he couldn’t say anything. He was just pointing his finger behind his left ear. There was nothing we could do. We just stayed there, crying.

Sintasas’ relatives told Human Rights Watch that when the police arrived at the crime scene, he was already dead. The police examined the wound and the position of the body, and picked up the spent bullet casings. Sintasas’ wife said that the Scene of the Crime Operatives investigators questioned her but did not take down her statement. The police told the family that Sintasas had been shot with a .45 caliber handgun.

Because it was a Muslim holy week the family hurriedly buried the body. Since then the family has had no further interaction with the police. According to Sintasas’ wife:

We didn’t go to the police to inquire about the case, because we had a strong suspicion that the people who killed my husband were either policemen themselves or well-known to the police. A wife of an officer from the Fermin Lira police camp told me some 10 days after the killing that this murder caused some trouble in the police—they called a meeting where they discussed that it was a mistake and that they felt sorry.

According to the relatives, Frederick Lanuy surrendered to the police shortly thereafter and was charged with drug dealing. When Sintasas’ wife came to visit him in detention, Lanuy said that when he turned himself in the policeman told him he was lucky he surrendered on time as otherwise he “would have been the next one.”

At the time they spoke to Human Rights Watch, the relatives had no further information on any progress in the investigation.

Allen Conjorado, 23, killed on January 14, 2008; Ronaldo Conjorado, 15, killed on January 14, 2008; “Malaya,” 6, shot on January 14, 2008

Allen Conjorado was a fisherman, and his younger brother, Ronaldo Conjorado, worked as a laborer at a company that manufactured fishing bowls. Both lived in General Santos City.[79]

A relative who witnessed the killings told Human Rights Watch that Allen was known in the neighborhood for selling drugs. Neighbors told the family that he was on the list of “people to be executed.” The neighbors repeatedly warned the family that Allen should leave, but he did not take the warning seriously. The family never had any warning regarding their 15-year-old son Ronaldo.

The relative told Human Rights Watch that on January 14, 2008, Allen and Ronaldo were at a small store owned by their aunt. At around 11 a.m., three men on a red-and-white XRM 200 Honda motorcycle appeared outside the store. They parked the motorcycle, and two of them entered the store and shot Allen and Ronaldo, as well as their aunt’s six-year-old daughter. When they walked out, the third man, who was waiting outside, shouted that someone was still alive, and the two gun men returned and shot Ronaldo again.

According to the relative, the motorcycle had no license plate and the two gunmen wore baseball caps, khaki camouflage shirts, and jeans. The police later told the family that the gunmen had used a.45-caliber and a 9-mm handgun.

Immediately after the shooting, their relatives took Allen and Ronaldo to the hospital, but both were pronounced dead on arrival. The aunt’s daughter, who was also taken to the hospital with a head injury, survived.

According to the relative, the police have not contacted the family since, and the family has not been informed whether the police had opened a case.

Digos City

Marco Angelo, 16, killed on March 27, 2003

On March 27, 2003, in Digos City, the family of high school student Marco Angelo waited for his return from school. When he did not come home in the evening, they thought he might have stayed with a friend, but in the morning the family got worried and started searching for him.[80]

At around 8 a.m. on March 28, an acquaintance informed the family that Marco’s body had been found outside the city, and that he had been “salvaged” (Philippine slang for a targeted killing).

According to the family, Marco’s body bore marks of torture—burns on his chest, teeth knocked out—and one bullet wound, under his chin. The body was tied with a rope. The body was found in a secluded place, and the family did not manage to find any direct witnesses to the killing.

The family said that despite their requests, the police did not conduct a thorough investigation into the killing, and instead kept saying that Marco had been killed by members of the gang from his school.

A local community leader, who has been following extrajudicial killings in Digos City, provided Human Rights Watch with further details of the case. He believed that Marco was a suspected drug user and had been killed by the Digos death squad after his classmate, a death squad member, delivered him to the place where the execution took place. The classmate, according to this source, was the son of a policeman who was one of the death squad handlers in the area. Marco may have been tortured because the death squad was trying to get the names of drug dealers from him. A local official, familiar with the Digos death squad operations, confirmed to Human Rights Watch that this was a likely motive for the killing.

Abdul Naser Diamad, 30, killed in 2001

According to a relative, Abdul Naser Diamad dealt drugs and had been arrested before for selling drugs.[81]

Diamad’s relative, who talked to eyewitnesses, told Human Rights Watch that on April 1, 2000, two gunmen aboard a motorcycle shot him twice, on his cheek and neck, in front of his house. He required hospitalization for several weeks, but survived. When the family inquired with the police, the police said he had been shot by other drug dealers, but didn’t explain how they knew that.

Eyewitnesses told the family that the assailants used what appeared to be one .45-caliber handgun and another 9-mm handgun, and were riding an XRM Honda motorcycle. One was wearing a baseball cap, the other a khaki army hat. The family told the police what they heard from witnesses, including that the shooter appeared to be a known police officer, but the police ignored this information.

Diamad’s relative said police neither conducted forensic investigation nor talked to witnesses. The police told the family that they did not file a case because they could not identify the gunmen.

About a year later, Diamad was fatally shot. The relative told Human Rights Watch that he had witnessed the killing. He said that the gunmen, at least one of whom had an automatic rifle, shot Diamad in front of his house. He was first shot in the stomach, and when he fell on the ground, the gunmen shot him again. Diamad’s father rushed him to the hospital, but this time the doctors did not manage to save his life.

The relative told Human Rights Watch that the family was unaware of any progress in the investigation. He mentioned, however, that a police intelligence officer, who was a family friend, told them that Diamad had been shot by members of a death squad.