THE man who was mistaken to be the suspect in the road rage killing in Quiapo, Manila Monday night is threatening to sue an editor of a motoring magazine for implicating him in the killing of a cyclist on their Facebook page.
“’Sorry but sorry does not cut it,” said Nestor Punzalan, whom Top Gear Philippines editor-in-chief Vernon Sarne identified as the gunman who shot bicyclist Mark Vincent Geralde dead after an altercation on Monday. “What they did to me was gravely wrong. They must pay for it.”
“They accused me of being a killer. I was traumatized. My family was traumatized. In their messages and comments [in the viral video], it’s as if they also wanted to kill me,” Punzalan said.
Both the Manila Police District and the National Bureau of Investigation cleared Punzalan of any wrongdoing even as they identified the real suspect as Vhon Martin Tanto, an Army reservist with a reputation in his own neighborhood of being quarrelsome.
Punzalan’s lawyer DJ Jimenez said Sarne committed a form of cyberbullying which is punishable under the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
“That is a civil liability. They must face the charges before a court. They are liable based on the Cybercrime Prevention Act since this is a form of cyberbullying,” Jimenez told reporters at the NBI.
Sarne admitted posting the photo that identified Punzalan and offered an apology.
“I was responsible for posting the photo of Mr. Punzalan’s vehicle, and I realize now that I shouldn’t have done so. I accept full responsibility. This is all on me. I will do my best to reach out to Mr. Punzalan and personally apologize to him and his family. The buck stops here. This is all my fault,” he said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the police recovered Tanto’s car in the mountain town of Aritao, Nueva Viscaya.
Senior Supt Antonio Gardiola, PNP Highway Patrol Group chief, said the red Hyundai Eon with conduction sticker No. MO-3745 was found at the house of Tanto’s brother-in-law Jonathan Leano.
Despite the recovery of Tanto’s car, however, the army reservist, considered as armed and dangerous, remained on the loose and the subject of a “shoot-to-kill” order.