P’panga mall ‘shootout’ probed

• Source:http://journal.com.ph/news/provincial/p-panga-mall-shootout-probed
• Friday, December 25, 2015

By Bernard Galang

ANGELES City -- Police are digging deeper into the alleged shootout at the parking area of SM City Clark here last December 24, wherein a policeman was killed, to find out if it was a legitimate encounter and not a rubout.

PO1 Jomar Binuya Batul, 28, resident of Caloocan City and assigned at the Oriental Mindoro Provincial Police Office, died from two gunshot wounds in the head, one on the right shoulder, one on the left arm and one on the foot after allegedly shooting it out with a Clark Development Corporation (CDC) policeman and mall guards.

However, no gun was recovered from Batul.

Senior Supt. Sydney Villaflor, police director here, said several empty shells for cal. 9mm firearm were recovered at the crime scene but no gun was recovered from the Mindoro policeman.

Batul, who was in a hotel resort in Clark Freeport Zone with his family for the holiday, was accused of trying to grab the motorcycle of one Manny Caritativo at the Jollibee restaurant at Bertaphil Compound on MA Roxas Avenue corner Jose Abad Santos Street at 3 p.m. but failed after the latter resisted.

The policeman then got into the front passenger seat of a Jollibee service multi cab and ordered its driver, Michael Ojera, to bring him to Manila at gunpoint.

Fearing for his life, Ojera told the police that he followed Batul’s order but upon reaching the Clark main gate, he quickly got out of the vehicle and reported to a CDC policeman and security guards there that an armed man was inside the multi-cab van.

Batul also alighted and walked towards SM City Clark. CDC policeman Jake Machinal then boarded a mobile patrol car and followed Batul.

At the SM Clark parking space, Machinal sought help from security guards. He told the police that Batul fired at him and he fired back and took cover.

“Nakita ko ang mga guwardiya na nakasunod sa kanya na dumapa at pinaputukan din sila ng lalaki (Batul) at sila rin ay gumanti ng putok,” he said.

Machinal said after three minutes, the gunfires stopped. “Dahan-dahan akong lumapit sa mga sasakyan sa parking lot kung saan nakatago ang lalaki at nakita ko na nakahandusay na ito. Lumapit din ang mga guwardiya ng SM Clark,” he said.

SPO4 Romeo Amarillo, a police investigator, said that when he and the other city policemen arrived, Batul was already in handcuffs and being loaded to an ambulance.

He said there was no gun, supposedly used by Batul in the alleged shootout, turned over to the police.

Villaflor said further investigation into the case will try to establish if Ba-tul was really armed and find out if a gun was recovered from him.

The four empty shells recovered at the scene were for cal. 9mm pistol.