NBI Charges Cops Involved in Archival’s Death

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will request the Ombudsman-Visayas that the members of the PNP Highway Patrol Group 7 allegedly involved in the ambush-slaying of Atty. Noel Archival and two of his aides be preventively suspended.

This after the NBI and the Special Investigation Task Group-Archival filed multiple murder and frustrated murder complaints against the five HPG-7 officers before the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor Office on Tuesday.

Named respondents in the complaints were HPG-7 director Romualdo Iglesia; HPG provincial chief Eduardo Mara; HPG special operations team head Joselito Lerion; HPG-7 custodian Edwin Galan and HPG operative Alex Bacani.

Archival and his three aides were on board a vehicle in Barangay Coro, Dalaguete town bound to Cebu City when armed men riding in red Toyota Vios sedan and gray Mitsubishi Strada pick-up peppered bullets to them.

Aside from Archival — brother of incumbent Cebu City Councilor Nestor Archival – his aides Candido Miñoza and driver Alejandro Jayme, were also killed in the ambush. Only Paulo Cortez survived the ambush.

The NBI believed that the concerned HPG officials used their impounded vehicles during the ambush, but changed the vehicles’ plates.

The lone survivor narrated that before the ambush, a red Toyota Vios kept blocking their path while the gray Mitsubishi Strada pick-up was tailing them until they reached Barangay Coro, Dalaguete past 1 pm last February 18.

The NBI claimed that the recordings from Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras showed that before Archival’s vehicle was strafed with bullets, it showed that the red Toyota Vios and a gray Strada kept on flanking and sandwiching the lawyer’s Ford SUV.

After the attack, video footage obtained from private firms again showed that the red Toyota Vios and the gray Mitsubishi Strada passed the area.

Weapons

The armed men were using two M16 Armalite rifles and two 9 millimeter (9mm) firearms as the result of the forensic examination showed that the empty shells of ammunition recovered at the crime scene were actually fired from four different kinds of guns.

Similar Characteristics

An empty shell of M16 Armalite rifle that was recovered from the red Toyota Vios sedan seized from the impounding area of HPG-7 in Sitio Sudlon, Lahug days after the ambush, has similar characteristics of some of those recovered at the crime scene.

The right side window of the red Toyota Vios sedan also found positive of gun power residues, which indicates that guns were fired from this part of the vehicle.

Survivor’s Account

The lone survivor Paulo Cortez, said that the persons on board the red Toyota Vios sedan fired their weapons from the right side of the vehicle after overtaking their SUV.

According to the NBI, the possible motive why Archival was killed is because the lawyer had “almost came to blows” against HPG-7
personnel headed by Senior Inspector Lerion after the lawyer reported to Mabolo Police Station the alleged attempt of some HPG 7 officers to extort P200,000 from one of his clients, Jane Catherine.

Archival also filed several cases against HPG officials before the Ombudsman.

Security Logbook

The private security guards manning the entrance of the HPG 7 impounding area helped so much in the investigation with their logbook, which showed that the suspects were using some of the impounded vehicles by driving out of the impounding area.

Entries in the logbook showed that Senior Supt. Iglesia drove an impounded Mitsubishi Strada (NVO 543) out of the impounding area in the morning of February 17, 2014, or a day before Archival was ambushed.

In the morning of February 18, the day when Archival was ambushed, Lerion drove a Toyota Vios (GSC 995) out of the HPG 7 impounding compound at 9:42 a.m. Witnesses said that the Red Toyota Vios used by the armed men had a plate numbers “995.”

Lerion returned the vehicle to the HPG impounding area at 3:38 p.m. or some two hours after the ambush. It added that the Mitsubishi Strada, which Iglesia still drove, also returned the vehicle at the HPG impounding compound in Lahug at around 4:22 in the afternoon.

Raid

When the NBI raided the HPG impounding area by virtue of a search warrant, they failed to find the red Toyota Vios sedan (GSC 995), but seen at the impounding area the same red Toyota Vios only with a different plate number.

The NBI were also surprised because while the impounded vehicle is owned by another person, a letter reportedly sent by Archival to the HPG officials in relation to a case pending in court, has been found inside the car.

The government prosecutors will order the suspects to submit their counter-affidavit within 10 working days upon receipt of the notice.