A couple who claimed they were wrongly accused of theft will file criminal, civil and administrative charges against the policemen from Police Station 2 of the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) who arrested them, two employees of a restaurant who testified against them and the complainant who sued them.
Medardo Zamora, 30, and his live-in partner, Jeah Marie Moreño, 28, assisted by their lawyer, Jonathan Villegas faced the media yesterday to announce their legal move.
“This is a big shame. We are going to file criminal, civil and administrative charges against all of the persons involved,” said Villegas.
The couple was arrested July 21 and were identified by the police as members of a big-time Salisi Gang.
They were accused of stealing the bag of Junalyn Bernas. Her missing bag allegedly contained P100,000 cash and a cellular phone worth P30,000.
Bernas was having a meal with her family in a restaurant in Parkmall in Mandaue City when her bag was reportedly switched with the one owned by Moreño.
The couple yesterday showed images grabbed from a closed-circuit television footage taken at SM City Cebu between 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on July 19 to prove that they were not in Parkmall when Bernas lost her bag.
Moreño explained that she also lost her bag containing P10,000 cash and some identification cards while she was at SM last July 19. She reported the loss of the bag at the nearby Mabolo Police Station.
On July 21, policemen from the Mandaue City Police Station 2 went to their house in Minglanilla town and invited them for questioning after Moreño’s bag had been found.
“In good faith, we went with them,” Zamora said.
At the police station, they were placed under arrest and were incarcerated. They said they were traumatized as it was the first time to get arrested.
Maria Paz Rosales, a retiree, went to the police station and identified them as the ones who took her wallet that allegedly contained P200,000.
When they appeared in court, an employee pulled Moreño’s hair and claimed she too was a victim.
The incident allegedly prompted Judge Teresita Galanida to raise their bail bond to P80,000 each instead of P40,000 because they have allegedly victimized other people in the past.
The couple’s counsel insisted that the other complainants were only taking advantage of his client’s arrest.
“It is an issue of mistaken identity and denial of due process,” Villegas said.
Zamora added that they will file charges against the police and all those who executed affidavits against them including the two restaurant employees who claimed they saw the couple in their restaurant swapping Moreño’s bag with that of Bernas’.
“If you are a smart criminal, you will not leave anything that will lead to your identification,” Villegas said.