A Muntinlupa City regional trial court has resolved to archive the murder case filed against former Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag and his former deputy, Ricardo Zulueta, pending their arrest, in connection with the death of a New Bilibid Prison inmate.
In a seven-page order, the Muntinlupa City RTC Branch 206 archived the case on the killing of Jun Villamor, the alleged middleman in the murder of broadcaster Percy Lapid.
The case will be revived once the court acquires jurisdiction over the accused when they are arrested or if they surrender.
Earlier, the Department of Justice has offered a P3 million cash reward to anyone who can provide information on Bantag and Zulueta, who both remain at large despite the issuance of a warrant of arrest against them.
DOJ officer-in-charge Raul Vasquez explained that archiving the case was only part of the process.
“When an accused is not under the jurisdiction of the court, the prosecution or the trial cannot resume. The first crucial act is the fact that the accused is subjected within the jurisdiction of the trial court,” Vasquez said.
The DOJ official said failure to archive a case may cause administrative problems in the courts’ dockets.
“Cases like that should not be delayed for a long time because it may affect the performance of the Court. So they archive it subject to revival,” Vasquez said.
Meanwhile, several accused pleaded guilty to lesser offenses and were sentenced by the court.
“Considering the pleas of guilty of the present accused, the prosecution was able to prove the guilt of all the accused present beyond a reasonable doubt,” the order said.
The lower court said Mario Alvarez, Christian Ramac, Ricky Salgado, Ronnie Dela Cruz, and Joel Reyes pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of accomplice to the crime of murder. They were sentenced to a minimum imprisonment of six years to up to 14 years, eight months, and one day.
According to the court, they are also ordered to pay P75,000 as civil indemnity, P75,000 as moral damages, and P75,000 as exemplary damages to the complainant.
On the other hand, accused Alvin Labra, Aldrin Galicia, and Joseph Georfo pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of accessory to the crime of murder. They were sentenced to a minimum imprisonment of two years and four months to up to eight years and one day. The three were also directed to pay the complainant P50,000 as civil indemnity, P50,000 as moral damages, and P50,000 as exemplary damages.
Lapid was shot dead in Las Piñas City on October 3, 2022.
Villamor, meanwhile, died at the NBP on October 18. An autopsy conducted by forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun showed that his remains had a “history of asphyxia by plastic bag suffocation.”
Last week, the Las Piñas Regional Trial Court sentenced the three NBP inmates to two to eight years in prison as accessories in the Lapid killing.