Inside story behind a Baguio vendor’s torture and death

BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred P. Dizon

BAGUIO CITY –Whatever outcome the final police investigation on the death of Oscar Caranto, there would always be the truth on what really happened. 

Caranto was a 52-year old ambulant vendor who recently died here due to internal hemorrhage after he was reportedly brutally beatenand tortured by members of the city government’s Public Order Safety Division.

Caranto, a native of Basista, Pangasinan died was confined at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center on July 3 or nine days after he was reportedly mauled by four POSD members conducting anti-peddling operations along Kayang Street on June 24.

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Stories have surfaced on what caused his death and most have pointed to the POSD men as culprits. For whatever reasons, the latter have not yet issued a statement on the matter.

One version:  On the date Caranto was mauled, POSD personnel and ambulant vendors were involved in a commotion which resulted to his arrest for reportedly violating the city’s anti-peddling policy.

He was later turned over to personnel of the Baguio City Police Office Station No. 7 who in turn escorted him to undergo the required mandatory check-up.In the evening of June 24, Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center doctors reportedly certified he had no signs of external injuries.

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The following day, he was reportedly released by Baguio City Police Station personnel in good physical condition who said Caranto even affixed his own signature when he was set free. (Was he jailed that night despite his injuries?)

However, on June 27, Caranto was confined at the intensive care unit of the BGHMC for obvious signs of external injuries and intestinal wounds which his wife claimed he sustained when he was reportedly mauled by the four POSD personnel on June 24.

Some officials asked how come Caranto had injuries when he was released in good physical condition by the police morning of June 25?

An impartial doctor could answer that -- if despite having no visible signs of external injuries, a person could suffer from internal injuries which could cause his death.

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Here is another version:  The day Caranto was arrested, he was chased by the POSD men on suspicion he was the one who threw a stone at a truck they were using for anti-peddling activities.

The vendor was forcibly brought to the POSD office at the city market where he was mauled by the four government men and later taken to the main city police headquarters at Station 7.

There, Caranto was again mauled by the POSD men at the holding area while police reportedly turned a blind eye and didn’t do anything to stop the torture.Later, he was taken to the BGHMC where he was examined by doctors who reportedly certified he had no external injuries.

Was Caranto not subjected to intensive medical tests at the BGHMC when he was taken there by the police? Did he really have no external injuries? Who were the doctors who examined Caranto? Were they lying when they made the medical certificate on behest of those who brought Caranto to the hospital?

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The mystery is getting deeper. Either way, some people could be trying to muddle the truth to save some asses. Now cause-oriented groups are pressing an impartial investigation on the matter.

According to a witness, Caranto was indeed beaten by POSD men at the police station. The kicks and punches were reportedly loud enough for anybody in the area to hear and the police could have been deaf or blind if they didn’t see or hear these, reason why they didn’t stop the torture.

There are other stories. But the key to the mystery and identity of the killers is known by a man who was told by Caranto in his dying moments just before he gasped his last breath. He is the one who knows the answer to the puzzle.

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A dying man will always tell the truth. The confidanteknows the truth and is waiting for the right time to spill the beans. Besides, why was Caranto buried without being autopsied?

In the US, even cadavers are unearthed from graves and re-examined by medical and crime experts if only to attain justice. No stone should be left unturned if only to give justice to a man whose fault was being poor.