Bacaltos family still hoping for justice despite junking of motion for reinvestigation

Cebu City, Philippines—Alma Bacaltos, the matriarch of the Bacaltoses, is still hopeful that justice will be served for her late husband and late son despite their petition for reinvestigation being denied by a court in Cebu City.

Presiding Judge Ma. Lynna Adviento of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 58 denied the petition of Bacaltos’s camp to reinvestigate the charges of homicide against Vincent Navales.

Navales is facing homicide charges over the bloody altercation between their group and some members of the Bacaltos family leading to the death of the Edwin Bacaltos, Shaun Bacaltos, and Navales’ younger brother, Vanzant Navales.

This shootout occurred in front of the Bacaltos’ residence in Barangay Sambag 1 on January 21, 2019, a day after Sinulog.

Read more: Three dead as two former friends’ feud leads to shooting incident in Sambag 1

The Bacaltos camp filed for the petition for reinvestigation in an attempt to raise the case of Vincent from homicide back to murder, which was the initial case filed against him.

According to Alma, they will be filing once again another petition for reinvestigation once they can gather additional documents for the case.

Alma claimed that there was allegedly a conspiracy in Navales’ group’s actions because this could not have happened if they did not come to our home.

Bradley Bacaltos, the brother of the slain Edwin Bacaltos and Shaun Bacaltos, said they would be working on the required documents as soon as they could because the case hearing would begin on May 20.

Read more: Charges against Michael Bacaltos downgraded to homicide and attempted homicide

Judge Adviento, in her order dated April 26, 2019, said the decision came after finding “procedural infirmities” in the petition filed by Alma Bacaltos.

The judge also cited that for the court to grant the motion for reinvestigation, the complainant should have secured the conformity of the public prosecutor.

“Vincent Navales can never be charged with murder. The City Prosecutor already ruled on the matter, and the court agreed. He is charged with homicide, not murder,” said Lawyer Amando Ligutan, Navales family’s legal counsel.

“This is consistent with the fact that Vincent Navales only went after his younger brother Vanzant to pacify the latter when Vanzant went to the Bacaltos’ residence to confront Michael Bacaltos,” he added.

The case against Navales for charges of homicide remains pending in court and hearing will start on May. /dbs