Miguel Osmeña, son of incoming Mayor Tomas Osmeña picked up SPO1 Adonis Dumpit upon his release on bail yesterday. The photo was posted by Tomas on his FB page yesterday. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)
SPO1 Adonis Dumpit is back in Cebu and ready to serve.
He was finally released from the Leyte Regional Penitentiary in Abuyog at around 10 a.m. yesterday.
Except for a selfie with the son of Cebu City Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña, the controversial policeman arrived at a private hangar at the General Aviation in Mactan at past 2 p.m. without much fanfare.
There, Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña himself met Dumpit and the group rode in Osmeña’s bulletproof vehicle.
A reporter, who was with Osmeña said Dumpit sat silently inside the vehicle but when told by the mayor-elect that many netizens were excited about his arrival Dumpit said was happy about this.
Dumpit was quoted as saying that he is ready to serve the people of Cebu City, even if he is not a Cebuano.
Osmeña brought Dumpit to an undisclosed hotel where he met his two children, a 12-year -old boy and an adopted daughter.
Osmeña reportedly did not want to publicize Dumpit’s whereabouts for security reasons.
But he is expected to report to the Police Regional Officer (PRO-7) on Monday for his possible reinstatement to active duty.
Dumpit, in an earlier interview said he wanted to meet with Osmeña first and personally thank the latter for taking care of his P250,000 bail bond.
RELEASE
Miguel, Osmeña’s son said that as early as last Thursday, Dumpit was ready to be released.
Miguel went to Tacloban City on board a private plane to fetch Dumpit.
Before travelling back to Cebu, he took a picture of himself and Dumpit and posted it on Facebook with the caption “Now in Tacloban airport. Adonis is in good spirits. We have filed our flight plan to Cebu and will be taking off shortly. Dumpit is coming home :-).”
Dumpit’s lawyer Benjamin Militar said they were careful about bringing Dumpit back to Cebu City because there might be people whom the policeman had arrested before his conviction who may take advantage and retaliate.
“Dumpit had nothing to defend himself with, when he stepped out of jail. We don’t want anybody to take advantage of the situation. Until he landed in Cebu, we needed to secure him,” Militar told CDN.
Militar refused to divulge where Dumpit proceeded and where he will stay.
“I know his whereabouts but I won’t reveal it for now,” he said.
According to the lawyer, it would be up to Mayor -elect Osmeña to present Dumpit to the media.
“It all depends on him. It’s his call,” he said.
Militar said it took two weeks to process his release from jail.
Judge Carlos Arguelles of the Regional Trial Court Branch 10 in Abuyog, Leyte who signed Dumpit’s release order, had to personally go to the LRP to administer Dumpit’s oath in compliance with undertakings set by the court.
“Although Dumpit is granted bail, he cannot travel abroad, and he should be present whenever he is needed by the court. Since the jail is like Muntinlupa, Dumpit is not allowed to go out. Hence, the judge had to go there to administer the oath,” he said.
“We’re really hoping that Dumpit will be acquitted by the Court of Appeals,” he added.
GUILTY
Dumpit was convicted of homicide by the Regional Trial Court for the shooting to death of a 17-year-old robbery suspect.
His lawyers filed an appeal before the Court of Appeals. Meanwhile Dumpit was in jail for six years.
He filed a petition for bail pending his appeal, which the CA granted last May 13.
With his release comes the possibility of reinstatement to active duty although Osmeña had earlier said he would get him as his close-in bodyguard.