The mother of one of the three Revolutionary Proletarian Army-Alex Boncayao Brigade members, accused for the murder of Judge Henry Arles and detained at the National Bureau of Investigation jail in Manila, yesterday said she has filed a petition for a Writ of Amparo against the NBI before the Regional Trial Court of Bacolod.

Tessa Fortunado of Barangay Tampalon, Kabankalan City, is asking the court to order NBI director Nonnatus Caesar Rojas, NBI Bacolod chief Ferdinand Lavin and agents Syrus Aluzan and Modesto Orestes Cajita to produce her son Eddie Fortunado, and to explain why he is being deprived of his liberty and tortured.

She is also asking that the court order the protection of her son from further harm and restraint of his liberty.

The petition for a Writ of Amparo is a remedy available to any person whose right to life, liberty and security is violated, or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.

Also detained at the NBI jail in Manila are RPA-ABB members Jessie Daguia and Alejandro Capunong who are facing illegal possession of firearms charges before the Bacolod RTC, on top of the murder complaint against them and Ilog Mayor Paul Alvarez before the Department of Justice.

TRANSFER SOUGHT

Jenny Capunong, mother of Alejandro, and Ofelia Daguia Anlap, sister of Jessie, through their lawyer Romeo Subaldo have asked the courts to order the transfer of the two to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in Bacolod.

Lavin said his instructions from NBI top management is to oppose the transfer of the three to Bacolod in court, in view of the pendency of their murder case with the DOJ.

Bringing them back to Bacolod would entail a lot of security arrangements, but if we are ordered by the court, then we will comply, Lavin added.

Meanwhile, Tessa Fortunado, in her petition filed Monday before the Bacolod RTC, said her son was arrested by NBI agents at the Land Transportation Office in Himamaylan City on June 27 without any lawful ground as he was not committing any crime.

The petition said Fortunado’s family was not informed of his arrest and whereabouts, and, along with Daguia and Capunong he was made to admit to the killing of Arles.

TORTURE CLAIMED

Torture was resorted to by the NBI to make Fortunado admit to the killing, which included electric shock on his genitals, the petition claimed.

Lavin has denied that Fortunado, Daguia and Capunong had been tortured. The NBI Bacolod has not received a copy of the petition for a Writ of Amparo yet, so it can be studied and taken up with higher management, Lavin said.

Meanwhile, written complaints of Daguia , Capunong and Forunado about their detention were submitted to the CHR in Bacolod by their relatives yesterday.

The three RPA-ABB men also issued a written statement that their lawyer is now Honorata Victoria, and that they have terminated the services of lawyer Ana Marie Palermo.

Lavin said the NBI has not been officially informed yet who the new lawyer of the 3 RPA-ABB men is, and on record, it is still Palermo.

The three RPA-ABB men also released a statement asking that the Arles family not be allowed to visit them at the NBI detention cell as they are being threatened that they will be killed if they do not follow their wishes.

They are also asking the media to visit them at the jail so they can reveal all, in case something happens to them.

Frank Britanico, brother-in-law of the slain judge, said the Arles family has no plans to visit the three at the NBI jail if that is their attitude.

The only reason why the family was visiting them was to make sure that they were in good condition, and they even brought food and cigarettes to them, he said. They are the ones who benefitted from our visits, he added.

NO NEED FOR THREATS

Britanico also said there is no reason for them to threaten the three as they claim, as they already have what they need for the court trial.

He pointed out that it was the three RPA-ABB men who said they feared physical harm, that is why they sought NBI protective custody.

They said they feared that their lives were in danger of elimination by members of their organization or the mastermind in the murder of the judge, Britanico pointed out.

Lavin also said that even if the three RPA-ABB men retract their original admission of involvement in the Arles slay, their presence at the crime scene were testified to by independent witnesses.

‘POLITICIZED’

“This case is getting out of hand, it has been to some extent politicized. The NBI would only like to stay within its investigative mandate,” he said,

Lavin also said talk of his transfer out of Bacolod appears to be an imaginary situation, as he has not been informed of this by his officials.

“If we are caught in a controversy because of a sensational case, that’s part of the job. We cannot turn our backs on this,” he said.

Lavin said he would welcome a visit from the relatives of the three RPA-ABB men to his office if they have any queries, but they have not come to see him.*CPG

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