Retired general’s men guilty of grave threats

Fusillero

A CEBU City judge has convicted a police officer, a soldier, and two farmers for threatening to kill a peasant in the mountain barangay of Taptap in 2007.

In a decision dated March 31, 2014, Judge Alexander Acosta of the Regional Trial Court Branch 9 in Cebu City found sufficient basis to convict PO3 Jessie Tibalan, Army Cpl. Cristituto Rueza, Bonifacio Rosaldo, and Danilo Villaban for threatening to kill Marcelino Soronio, a farmer assigned to tend to the plants in a farm owned by philanthropist Mariquita Salimbangon-Yeung.

The four accused worked for retired police general Tiburcio “Tiboy” Fusillero.

The judge gave credence to the testimonies of Soronio and his wife Epifania than the denial of the four accused, who earlier posted bail.

In his testimony, Soronio said he met Tibalan and the other accused while he was on his way home on June 19, 2007. He said Tibalan suddently pointed a gun at him, and threatened to kill him if he continues to cultivate the land owned by Yeung.

Soronio was surrounded by seven men, with six of them bringing bolos. This was corroborated by his wife.

PO3 Jessie Tibalan, Army Cpl. Cristituto Ruaza and farmers Bonifacio Rosaldo, and Danilo Villaban were immediately placed under custody after the verdict was read in open court Tuesday. They were meted out a jail term of four to eight years.

Farmers and Fusillero’s men had heated encounters in the past because of a dispute over a lot within a state-owned forest reserve placed under the supervision of Fusillero, who used to serve as director of the Police Regional Office 7.

Fusillero’s men allegedly slaughtered and killed the farmers’ cows and would fire their guns indiscriminately, an accusation which the retired police general denied.

In a phone interview, Fusillero expressed dismay over the court’s decision to convict his former security personnel.

“These guys are doing their job. We have the mandate to protect the forest. But look at the justice system in our country. The problem is those who have the money are being protected by the court,” he said.

Fusillero has an agreement with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) which allows him to reforest and watch over 504 hectares of state-owned forest lands in the mountains of Cebu City.

Farmers complained that Fusillero turned parts of the forest into a private resort. They also accused the former police officer of harassing and displacing farmers in the upland areas.