8 of 10 accused in Pestaño murder granted bail

A Manila court has allowed eight of the 10 Navy officers and enlisted personnel facing murder charges over the death of Ensign Philip Andrew Pestaño in September 1995 to post bail for their temporary freedom.

Judge Jansen Rodriguez of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 6 granted the bail petition of retired Navy Capt. Ricardo Ordoñez, Commander Reynaldo Lopez, Commander Alfrederick Alba, Lt. Commander Luidegar Casis, Lt. Commander Joselito Colico, Machinery Repairman 2nd Class Sandy Miranda, Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Welmenio Aquino and Petty Officer 2nd Class Mil Leonor Igacasan.

The court fixed the bail for the eight accused, who are currently detained at the Manila City Jail, at P200,000 each.  

"While there is strong indication that Philip did not commit suicide and that someone killed him in view of the fact that apparently the suicide note was not written by one and the same person; the gunshot was allegedly fired at a distance of more than three feet, hence, a physical impossibility of suicide, the presence of lacerated wound, an injury, allegedly, totally unrelated to the shooting as it was not in the trajectory of the bullet that entered the right temple and exited on the left temple of Philip's head, the Court is not prepared to conclude that the evidence strongly suggests that all the accused in this case are the perpetrators thereof," the court said in a resolution dated August 24.

The court added "mere inconsistencies" on the testimonies of the eight accused during the investigation on the incident "will not strongly suggest the conclusion that they were in unison to perpetrate the crime."

"More so, the suspicion that all the accused were involved in the grand cover up of Phillip's murder will not suffice to seal the prosecution's position."

Excluded from the bail grant were two other accused, retired Lt. Commander Ruben Roque and retired Petty Officer First Class Carlito Amoroso, who both remain at large.

The judge set the presentation of the prosecution's evidence for November 9.

Reacting to the court's decision, Pestaño's father, Felipe, said they only wanted the perpetrators of the crime be brought to justice.

"We want the truth but we want the right justice to prevail," he said. 

Alba, for his part, thanked God for his newfound freedom.

"Nagpapasalamat ako sa Panginoong Maykapal nabigyan uli ako ng kalayaan at ako'y umaasa na matatapos na rin agad agad itong kasong ito para makapagsilbi pa kami ng maayos sa bayan," he said.

Pestaño, then 24 years old, was found dead in the morning of September 27, 1995 inside his cabin on board the BRP Bacolod City, a Navy cargo ship which was then on its way to the Navy Headquarters in Roxas Boulevard, Manila from Sangley Point in Cavite City.

The Philippine Navy ruled his death as suicide, showing a note that was found near his body.

His family refused to believe the findings, saying Pestaño tried to blow the whistle on the anomalies taking place in the navy vessel such as the boarding of illegal drugs and illegally cut logs.

The family's suspicion was bolstered by the testimony of retired Technical Sergeant Dionisio Samiran, who said in a court hearing in October 2014 that Amoroso had admitted that he was the one who shot Pestaño.

Samiran, who was placed under the government's witness protection program, headed an investigation team that probed Pestaño's death. —NB/BAP, GMA News