The Supreme Court on Tuesday sustained the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman finding no probable cause to indict former President Benigno Aquino III, former PNP chief Alan Purisima, and former PNP-SAF head Getulio Napeñas with reckless imprudence resulting in homicide in connection with the 2015 Mamasapano encounter.
Voting 15-0, the high court dismissed the petition filed by the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption for lack of merit.
“The Court held that the Ombudsman did not commit grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction in dismissing the complaints for 44 counts of reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide filed against private respondents, the high court ruled.
“Wherefore, the petition is dismissed.
The Ombudsman’s consolidated resolution dated June 13, 2017 and consolidated order dated September 5, 2017 are affirmed insofar as they found no probable cause to charge private respondents Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, Alan Purisima and Getulio Napeñas with reckless imprudence resulting in homicide.”
The controversy arose from the botched Jan. 25, 2015 operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, by the elite PNP-SAF commandos to get wanted Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan.
Marwan was killed in the operation, but the SAF commandos were attacked by the combined forces of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and private armed groups, triggering a day-long firefight.
Only PO2 Christopher Lalan survived the firefight.
Eighteen MILF fighters were also confirmed killed in the battle. The investigations conducted by the PNP led by then General Benjamin Magalong faulted the poor planning as well as the lack of coordination with the military units in the area, as well as with the MILF, with whom the government had a ceasefire agreement.
The investigation also showed that the inclusion of Purisima, who at the time was on preventive suspension, affected the chain of command of the PNP.
Last Aug. 7, the high court lifted the temporary restraining order it earlier issued on the trial of the criminal case against Aquino, Purisima and Napeñas before the Sandiganbayan.
In 2017, the Office of the Ombudsman indicted Aquino, Purisima, and Napeñas for violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for their role in the Mamasapano operation.
The charges against Aquino, Purisima, and Napeñas were filed before the Sandiganbayan in November 2017 during the time of former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales.
However, the relatives and family members of the slain SAF commandos petitioned the high court asking that Aquino be charged instead with reckless imprudence resulting in homicide.
They were supported in their petition by Solicitor General Jose Calida. Calida said Morales disregarded the sufficiency of the evidence against the former president when she indicted him instead for graft and usurpation of authority.