A Las Piñas Regional Trial Court (RTC) has sentenced the self-confessed gunman in the October 2022 killing of broadcaster Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa to as long as 16 years in prison.
Roy Mabasa, the younger brother of the slain broadcaster, revealed that Las Piñas RTC Branch 254 Judge Cesar Huliganga found Joel Escorial guilty for his role in the killing.
“He was sentenced from eight years and eight months up to 16 years or reclusion temporal,” Roy said.
According to him, his family will not rest until all those involved in the killing are brought to justice.
“We just leave it to God, being the brother to the slain journalist. But we won’t quit until we uncover all the masterminds,” he said.
Roy said as part of the plea deal, Escorial will temporarily remain at the Philippine National Police (PNP) Custodial Center in Camp Crame since he will still serve as prosecution witness against Christopher Bacoto, another suspect in the case.
“He will stay in the custody of the PNP Custodial Center until the trial of Christopher Bacoto, another alleged accomplice, concludes. Bacoto is implicated in the crime as well,” the younger Mabasa added.
Escorial surfaced in October 2022, confessing he had shot Lapid dead together with his cohorts, brothers Israel and Edmon Dimaculangan, and one alias Orly.
They were indicted before the Las Pinas RTC as “principals by direct participation” in the killing of Lapid while former Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag and his deputy, Ricardo Zulueta, were charged as “principals by inducement.”
Bantag remained at large, with a P2-million reward on his head, while Zulueta died in March. The PNP said he succumbed to cerebrovascular disease intracranial hemorrhage.”
Several prisoners in the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa were also accused as “principals by indispensable cooperation” in the killing of Lapid.
Escorial said Bilibid inmate Cristito Palana Villamor alias Jun Villamor acted as the middleman and contacted him to do the hit on Lapid.
Villamor was later killed inside the national penitentiary in what Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said was meant to prevent him from spilling the beans on the mastermind behind Lapid’s murder.
In a related development, Roy said Huliganga directed the camp of Zulueta “to address the prosecutor’s request for an autopsy” due to doubts about the circumstances of his death.
Remulla earlier directed the National Bureau of Investigation to probe Zulueta’s death.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline Percy Lapid’s gunman sentenced up to 16 years in jail