MORE NEWS, NUEVA ECIJA

DOJ junks murder raps vs Ecija mayor

CABANATUAN CITY – The Department of Justice has dismissed a murder complaint against a Nueva Ecija town mayor charged for allegedly masterminding the gunslaying of a municipal employee six months ago.

In a seven-page resolution, the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office dismissed for insufficiency of evidence the information for murder against Mayor Amado Corpuz Jr. of Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija.

The resolution, penned by Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Edison Rafanan and approved by OIC-Provincial Prosecutor Floro Florendo found no prima facie evidence to indict Corpuz in connection with the June 4, 2008 murder of Angelito Espinosa.

The information for murder was filed by Espinosa’s widow, Priscila, whose witness Alexander Lozano executed a supplemental affidavit stating that he heard Corpuz telling his bodyguard Carlito Samonte to kill Espinosa and handing him the murder weapon, a stainless gun.

A separate case for murder is pending before the Regional Trial Court Branch 33 in Guimba town against Samonte.

DOJ records showed that prior to the killing, Espinosa and Samonte figured in a heated altercation at the municipal compound after the latter confronted the victim for staring at him. The victim was about to draw his gun but Samonte beat him to the draw and shot him dead.

Lozano, who said he did not mention Corpuz in his first affidavit for fear of his life, claimed that the mayor shouted “(expletive) Lito iyan, sige birahin mo (That f___ Lito, go ahead shoot him).”

Corpuz in his counter-affidavit denied any participation in the killing of Espinosa. He said that the incident which led to Espinosa’s killing was a matter between the victim and Samonte. He claimed Lozano’s allegations were biased and an afterthought full of improbabilities and that he did not witness the actual shooting incident.

He added that Lozano’s allusion to the victim as the person referred to as Lito is entirely an opinion because there are several persons bearing the same nickname.

Espinosa’s widow in her complaint disputed Corpuz’s claims he had no quarrel with the victim. She said her husband was behind the filing of several cases against Corpuz, which, she said, are enough grounds to give the mayor motive to order the killing.

The PNP Regional Crime Laboratory reported that the two guns recovered at the murder scene were black pistols and there was no stainless gun as claimed by Lozano.

In its ruling, the DOJ noted Lozano’s failure to tell Espinosa that Samonte would kill him. It said that if only Lozano did so, the victim would not have gone to the place where Corpuz and Samonte were, which it said, would be “ludicrous and suicidal.” -- MG