- GILBERT BAYORAN
The police announced Tuesday, June 20, a “breakthrough” in their investigations in connection with the massacre of four family members in rebel infested Sitio Kangkiling, Brgy. Buenavista, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental.
P/Capt. Judesses Catalogo, spokesperson of the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office, said they have an eyewitness in the incident and other witnesses have volunteered information to the police investigators.
He said the witnesses were relocated to ensure their safety.
Initial investigations of the Himamaylan police said that about 15 armed men were involved in the commission of the crime.
Catalogo, however, said they have yet to confirm the reported involvement of the New People’s Army, although it is among the angles being pursued in the investigations.
On June 14, Rolly Fausto, his wife Imelda, and their two sons, 11 and 15 years old, were shot dead in the sitio.
The Himamaylan police said witnesses revealed that the armed suspects shouted “Mabuhay ang NPA, Mabuhay ang Hukbo. Tanan nga traidor patyon (Long live the NPA, Long Live the Army. All the traitors must be killed)” after the shooting incident.
But Coni Ledesma, head of the National Democratic Front Special Office for the Protection of Children, said in a statement that “pinning the blame on the NPA is an old and tired tactic the AFP uses to escape accountability for its crimes against the people”.
Catalogo said the testimonies of witnesses will determine the culprits in the heinous crime.
“Hopefully, we will be able to convince more witnesses to give full accounts as to the commission of the crime to support (and corroborate) the testimonies of other witnesses as some of them appeared to be hesitant in disclosing more information, due to security concerns,” the NOCPPO spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Human Rights in Negros Occidental has started collecting documents and statements on the brutal killing of the Fausto family, said Vincent Para, head of the CHR sub-regional office in Bacolod City.
Para said they have requested the Himamaylan City Police Station for copies of the investigation report, spot report, and crime scene pictures.
He also disclosed that the Faustos have been “red- tagged” which is a human rights violation, and that Rolly was targeted by the NPA for facilitating the surrender of some of his relatives, as claimed by the military.
He added that they will also get the statements of the eldest daughter of the Fausto family, to validate reports that her parents were receiving threats./GB
