Court accepts evidence against accused petitioners in Ampatuan Massacre

CMFR/Philippines – The court hearing the Ampatuan Massacre trial admitted last 8 May 2014 most of the prosecution’s evidence against the bail petitions of a dozen accused persons including primary accused former Maguindanao provincial governor Andal Ampatuan Sr.

On 23 November 2009, 58 people, 32 of whom were journalists and media workers, were killed in a single incident of election-related violence in Ampatuan town, Maguindanao province. One-hundred ninety-seven (197) were originally named as accused.

Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of Branch 221 of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court accepted almost all of the 300 exhibits the prosecution offered against the bail petitions filed by accused Ampatuan Sr., former chief inspector Sukarno Dicay, Nasser Esmail, Nicomedes Tolentino, Armando Ambalgan, Misuari Ampatuan, Taya Bangkulat, Salik Bangkulat, Salipad Tampogao, Moktar Daud, Macton Bilungan and Mohades Ampatuan.

Reyes rejected the testimonies of former councilor Mohammad Sangki, and former police officers Rainer Ebus and Ariel Diongon, all of whom are also accused of involvement in the crime, but whom the prosecution has requested to be state witnesses.

Ampatuan Sr.’s counsel will present rebuttal evidence before his bail petition is submitted for resolution. The bail petitions of the other accused will be up for resolution after the court resolves the prosecution’s formal offer of evidence in the 58^th count of murder, that of photojournalist Reynaldo Momay.

The prosecution had been adopting evidence filed against the bail petitions as “evidence-in-chief” (evidence to prove guilt) and can present additional evidence in the trial proper after the bail petitions are resolved. But on 28 February 2014, the state prosecution panel manifested it was ready to rest its case in both the bail petitions and evidence-in-chief for 28 of the accused and was “disinclined” to present more evidence.

Court records show that 111 suspects in the massacre have been arrested since 2009, of whom 104 have been arraigned.