DOJ OKs murder raps vs road rage killer
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has approved the criminal indictment of Vhon Martin Tanto, the Philippine Army reservist who shot dead a cyclist and wounded a student in Manila in a fit of road rage last July.
In an eight-page resolution released yesterday, the DOJ found probable cause in the murder and serious physical injury charges filed against Tanto by the families of slain victim Mark Vincent Garalde and 18-year-old Rossel Bondoc.
Prosecutor General Claro Arellano, chief of the DOJ’s prosecutorial arm, said the cases would be filed against Tanto before the Manila City regional trial court within this week.
Investigating Assistant State Prosecutors Jeannette Dacpano and Robert Ong Jr. cited Tanto’s admission to the crimes charged as basis for their findings and recommendation for indicting him for violation of Article 248 (murder) and Article 263 (serious physical injury) of the Revised Penal Code.
“Based on the admission made by… Tanto, which contains details that only the person who committed the crime could have possibly known, it is pristine clear that he was the one who intentionally shot victim Garalde and involuntarily injured victim Bondoc,” read the resolution.
Apart from Tanto’s confession, the prosecutors also gave weight to the testimony of witness Bryan Yu, who said he saw Tanto shooting Garalde four times at close range after their fistfight, and a closedcircuit television recording of the incident that was submitted by the barangay where the incident took place.
Elements present
They stressed that murder’s key element of treachery was present in the case since Garalde had turned his back on Tanto and was moving away from the scene when the latter shot him.
The prosecutors said Garalde “was not afforded any chance to defend himself when he was shot four times.”
They said the “execution of the crime was directly and specifically for ensured by respondent without risk to himself from the defense that the victim might make.”
Another element of murder present in the case was the use of superior strength by the respondent, the prosecutors explained. They said Tanto took advantage of his having a gun and expertise in shooting in killing Garalde.
Lastly, prosecutors cited Tanto’s attempt to hide from authorities after the incident.
“Flight, in jurisprudence, has always been strong indication of guilt,” they added.
As for Bondoc’s case, the prosecutors downgraded the charge from frustrated murder to serious physical injury, explaining that there was no intention to kill her and that she was merely hit by a stray bullet from Tanto’s firearm.
In an earlier interview, Tanto claimed he had no intention of killing Garalde and claimed that he only lost his temper because of the cyclist’s arrogance during their altercation.
The altercation started when Tanto’s car was nearly hit by Garalde’s bicycle along Vergara street, a few meters away from P. Casal street where the fistfight and shooting took place on July 25.
Public Attorney’s Office chief Persida Rueda- Acosta represented the families of Garalde and Bondoc in filing the charges before the DOJ.