The Department of Justice has filed murder and planting of evidence charges against three policemen in connection with the killing of Spanish national Diego Lafuente in Surigao del Norte on Jan. 8, 2020.
Prosecutor General Benedicto A. Malcontento identified the suspects as Capt. Wise Vicente B. Panuelos, Sgt. Ronel A. Pazo, and Sgt. Nido Boy E. Cantos. The three were members of the Gen. Luna municipal police force.
The charges were filedat the Regional Trial Court after the DOJ found probable cause to the complaint lodged by the National Bureau of Investigation.
Those suspects claimed that Lafuente was a top drug trafficker in the Caraga Region, and that they were forced to defend themselves when he drew a gun as he was being arrested.
They also claimed that a .45 caliber pistol and cocaine weighing 8.3326 grams were recovered from Lafuente. Rey E. Requejo
But the prosecutors junked their defense, saying they found sufficient ground to file the murder cases against the three policemen.
“Although there were no eyewitnesses in the killing of Diego Lafuente, the recommendations of the panel of prosecutors were based on the SOCO (Scene of the Crime Office) report and forensic results that disproved the claim of respondents of a shootout,” the charge sheet stated.