More fratmen to be charged over Atio hazing

More members of the Aegis Juris fraternity are expected to be charged as Facebook Philippines has authenticated and preserved certain chats and accounts in the social media site where the messages detailed how they plotted to cover up the hazing death of 22-year-old University of Santo Tomas (UST) law freshman Horacio “Atio” Castillo III last Sept. 17.

Manila Police District head Chief Supt. Joel Coronel yesterday told the Senate inquiry into the case that Facebook Phil- ippines acted “favorably” on the MPD’s request to authenticate and preserve the exchange of messages and accounts of some 30 Aegis Juris members.

“We’re just waiting for the order of the Manila regional trial court to authorize (Facebook) to release them to the MPD,” Coronel, referring to the messages, told the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs chaired by Sen. Panfilo Lacson.

Coronel said the authenticated messages will be used as evidence to file charges of obstruction of justice against the Aegis Juris members.

The group chat was formed by some Aegis Juris members, including John Paul Solano, just a few hours after Castillo was declared dead on arrival at the Chinese General Hospital in Manila in the morning of Sept. 17 after he collapsed while undergoing initiation rites at the fraternity library located near UST.

Not all those who were added to the group chat, apparently created by lawyer Marvi Rosero Abo, however, participated in the exchange of messages. The group chat was deactivated a few days later.

In the previous hearing, Coronel said based on the chats, “it appeared there was a tendency to conceal, avoid and obstruct justice at all costs.”

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri presented to the panel additional chat messages that show some fraternity brothers discussing how to “clean up” the fraternity library and worrying about the presence of security cameras in the vicinity.

Zubiri said that aside from charges of obstruction of justice, the Supreme Court should also immediately go on with disbarment proceedings against those in the group chat.

‘Trojan horse’

During the hearing, Marc Ventura, who is among the 42 charged for Castillo’s murder and has been provisionally accepted as a state witness, testified that it took about 30-40 minutes before those present at the initiation rites decided to bring the victim to the hospital after he collapsed.

Prosecutor General Jorge Catalan appealed to the senators to not let Ventura disclose the contents of his sworn statement so as not to jeopardize the cases against the suspects.

The senators agreed but they were furnished copies of Ventura’s affidavit.

Lacson raised the possibility of Ventura being a “Trojan horse” who could eventually destroy the government’s case as some details of his statements differ from that of Solano.

Solano was called in to the fraternity library that fateful morning to try to revive Castillo.

‘Negligence’

Zubiri and Senators Grace Poe and Sherwin Gatchalian took turns expressing their disappointment over what they said were the “neglect” of UST officials over the incident. Aegis Juris is based in the UST Faculty of Civil Law but was not accredited by the university this school year.

Poe said UST officials “miserably failed” in its duty to protect its students because of its poor system of accrediting student organizations, like fraternities, as well as its actions immediately after the incident.

She said had the UST authorities properly disseminated information that Aegis Juris was not accredited this school year, the fraternity would not have been able to participate in orientation programs for law freshmen, and Castillo would not have been recruited.