[UPDATED] An active duty police officer in Palawan was among those indicted in the murder charge for the ambush-slay of private lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit in Narra, southern Palawan on November 17.
Among the named accused is Police Senior Master Sergeant Ariel Pareja, according to MIMAROPA PNP regional director Brigadier General Pascual Muñoz, in a report to PNP chief General Debold Sinas on Wednesday.
Also named respondents in the charges filed on Monday before the Palawan Provincial Prosecutor’s Office were Jazer del Rosario, Marcelino Quioyo, and six other John Does.
Muñoz said Pareja has been moonlighting as a bodyguard for Quioyo who is involved in a court case over a land dispute where Magcamit is representing the other party.
Muñoz also said that administrative charges are also being prepared against Pareja based on his indictment in the murder case.
Magcamit was believed to be on his way to a court hearing involving Quioyo’s case in Quezon town on the morning of the ambush on November 17.
Previously, P/Col. Dionisio Bartolome Jr., former director of the Palawan Provincial Police Office (PPO), brushed aside reports that a policeman is involved in Magcamit’s murder-slay.
“Based on our records and evidence, currently, there is no member of the PNP from among our persons of interest,” he said.
“In the event that the allusion, once the evidence surface, and if evidence warrants, corresponding charges will be filed. There will be no cover-up on this case and supremacy of rule of law will be upheld,” Bartolome added.
(with a report from Ruth Rodriguez)
