Alfie Ducayag was allegedly beaten up inside the security office of Gaisano Metro Colon by CCTV operator Jeffery Aquino.
Two of the three suspects in the fatal mauling of a man who was apprehended on suspicion of shoplifting in a department store in downtown, Cebu City, will be facing trial in court.
The Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office on Friday recommended the filing of murder charges against Jeffrey Aquino and Mauricio Doblados Jr. who purportedly had a hand in the death of Mario Alfie Ducayag inside the security office of Gaisano Metro Colon on April 12, 2013
Aquino, who used to be the department store’s security camera operator, was identified as the one who handcuffed Ducayag and beat him up, after he was detained for allegedly stealing a pair of sandals.
Doblados, the chief security officer when the incident took place, was accused of having conspired with Aquino in killing Ducayag.
Although he didn’t participate in beating up the victim, Doblados allegedly was the one who insisted that the victim be handcuffed so that he could not fight back.
City Prosecutor Nicolas Sellon said the attack on Ducayag was accompanied by treachery considering that the victim was handcuffed before he was beaten up.
“Whether it was Doblados alone who attacked and mauled Ducayag or whether it was Aquino, this matter is no longer material and relevant for purposes of determining their individual participation and criminal responsibility like who inflicted the blown for the reason that whenever there is conspiracy, there is also collective criminal responsibility and the act of one is the act of all,” the proscutor said in his resolution, a copy of which was obtained by Cebu Daily News.
Melvin Boyles, who was the store’s intelligence officer, was dropped from the case since he did not participate in cuffing and mauling the victim although he was inside the security office when the incident happened.
Once charges are formally elevated against Aquino and Doblados in court, the judge may issue arrest warrants against them.
Murder is a non-bailable offense.
The case drew much controversy because of initial attempts to cover up Ducayag’s death.
Ducayag, a father of two, was taken into custody on suspicion of shoplifting when he couldn’t show a receipt for a pair of Sandugo slippers in his shopping bag. Also in the bag were milk, biscuits and diapers he had bought for his children.
A probe conducted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) revealed that Ducayag “validly purchased the sandals” but lost the receipt.
Aquino’s lawyer Salvador Solima said they will contest the ruling of the Cebu City Prosecutors’ Office before the Department of Justice (DOJ).
“I will file a petition for review before the DOJ. The prosecutors’ office insists that my client should be charged with murder. If that is the case, I believe the case will be easily dismissed,” Solima said in a phone interview yesterday.
According to the NBI investigators, Aquino was the one who handcuffed Ducayag and solely inflicted blows on the victim’s body.
Solima said Aquino will run run away from the case and will instead face the accusations against him.
“He (Aquino) is just in Pinamungahan, (town, western Cebu). We’ve been communicating with each other. I told him not to escape,” the lawyer said.
Ducayag’s sister Marie Shantylle was elated with the recent development of the case.
Gaisano Metro Colon CCTV operator Jeffery Aquino.
However, she said her family’s quest for justice is still far from over.
“This development is another step closer to the justice we’re fighting for my brother. Every step is very special to us most especially the arrest of the perpetrators because not unless they are arrested, our struggles are half-cooked if you are to describe it like food,” Marie Shantylle told CDN.
“We have waited for about eight long months for the case to be field in court. That’s a long time so we wish it is indeed worth the wait. We just really want to get justice for Alfie. His death has been most tragic to fall in the hands of people who we expect would secure us inside their premises. May those who killed my brother be in jail,” she added.
Marie Shatylle said they would want to review the order of the prosecutor in dismissing the case against Boyles.
“We’re just shocked that the case against Boyles was dropped. We need to read the new resolution and ask for explanation,” she said.
Last year, the Cebu City Prosecutors’ Office recommended the filing of murder charges against Aquino, Doblados, and Boyles.
However, Boyles was dropped from the case after the Cebu City Prosecutors’ Office reviewed the case when the respondents filed a motion for reconsideration.
Prosecutor Sellon dismissed the case against Boyles since there is no evidence which showed that he took part in killing Ducayag.
“It is not disputed that he had no participation whatsoever whether directly or indirectly in the handcuffing of Ducayag and in the subsequent attack that followed,” Sellon explained.
“Although he was inside the security office when the mauling of Ducayag unfolded right before his very own eyes, such fact is not enough to tag him as conspirator as he had not even performed any act or uttered any word during the entire mauling incident that contributed to the realization of the criminal design of Doblados and Aquino,” he added.