15 hours ago
PNP: 81-year-old man jailed due to mistaken identity to receive compensation
The 81-year-old man who was wrongfully imprisoned in a case of mistaken identity will receive compensation, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
'Unfortunately, may napagkamalian but that person can invoke now yung compensation. Mayroon tayong batas na nagco-compensate sa mga taong wrongfully convicted,' PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III said at a press briefing Monday.
(Unfortunately, there was a mistake but that person can now invoke the compensation. We have a law that compensates those wrongfully convicted.)
The amount of compensation will depend on the decision of the concerned court, according to Torre.
Regarding the questions raised in connection with the old man's arrest, Torre said the PNP will check the details of the incident and will issue a statement on the matter.
'We will give you more details kapag nakuha namin. Pasensya na kayo hindi pa namin na-examine ang issue na yan. We'll do a close examination. Magbibigay kami ng statement regarding that matter,' Torre said.
(We will give you more details when we get them. I'm sorry we haven't examined that issue yet. We'll do a close examination. We will issue a statement regarding that matter.)
In a statement, the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers (NUPL) condemned the arrest and six-month detention of Prudencio Cebu 'Tatay Pruding' Calubid Jr. who was 'wrongfully and maliciously imprisoned' for insurgency.
'Police officials claimed they had apprehended Prudencio Calubid, an alleged high-ranking officer of the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People's Army (CPP-NPA),' the NUPL said.
'But the real Prudencio Calubid, a peace consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), has been a desaparecido since June 26, 2006, when he, his wife Celina Palma, and companions Gloria Soco and Ariel Beloy were abducted by suspected military agents. Yesterday marked the 19th year since their enforced disappearance," the NUPL said.
A P7.8-million reward was offered for the real Prudencio Calubid's capture, the NUPL noted.
'In such a system, law enforcement agencies, including the PNP, CIDG, and entities under the NTF-ELCAC, are incentivized not to uphold justice, but to deliver 'results' that align with operational quotas and reward mechanisms,' the NUPL said.
'Innocent civilians, especially the poor, become expendable. Bounty-hunting has replaced due process, with public funds being used to underwrite such abuses,' it added.
In its 67-page ruling, the Court of Appeals in its 67-page ruling found that the police failed to exercise minimum diligence required to verify whether Calubid was the same person named in multiple criminal informations and arrest warrants. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News
