Marantan: Atimonan bloodbath a 'lawful performance of duty'

Superintendent Hansel Marantan on Thursday maintained that the January 6 bloodbath in Atimonan, Quezon, was a "lawful performance of duty," even as President Benigno Aquino III agreed with the findings of the National Bureau of Investigation that the incident was a case of rubout. 

 

"We respect the findings of the NBI more so of the President. We stand by the chain of command. Just the same that we humbly maintain our position that its NOT rubout, but rather a lawful performance of duty," Marantan said in a statement sent to GMA News.

 

Aquino on Wednesday ordered the Department of Justice to file criminal and administrative charges against Marantan and 20 other policemen, including Chief Superintendent James Andres Melad, who was chief of the Calabarzon police at the time of the incident. Also to be charged were 14 soldiers, including three officers. The Atimonan incident resulted in the deaths of 13 people, including active police officers and an environmentalist at a police checkpoint manned by Marantan's group.  

“The recommendation is for multiple murder charges,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a previous report. Valte said the NBI investigators concluded that no shootout occurred, belying the claim of Marantan, who was wounded in the incident.

 

Marantan earlier claimed that the victims fired upon him first. “I was gunned down, and that triggered the shootout. I was brought to the hospital for immediate medication,” he said in a report last month. While he maintained the incident was a shootout, he said he will respect the results of the NBI probe on the incident.

 

"I don't have any bitterness against anyone in the higher echelon nor anger in my soul. Truth sometimes is elusive and even diffusive it has its own way of making itself known {according to my UST prof}. Please give us our day in the proper forum," Marantan said in his statement.

 

The 64-page NBI report stated that the incident was a case of intelligence failure resulting in the senseless massacre of innocent victims. 

 

"Police Superintendent Marantan claimed that he had reliable information proving that private armed groups were being utilized not only in illegal numbers game but also in the illegal drugs trade and also by politicians for the liquidation of their political opponents," the NBI said.

 

"Unfortunately, in a classic case of intelligence failure, the identities of the other occupants of the vehicles were not accurately established before the actual operation, thus resulting to the senseless massacre of innocent victims," it added. — Carmela G. Lapeña/RSJ, GMA News