Detail citing eyewitness code-named 'Marathon', from NBI National Prosecution Service special investigation team report.
Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Leila de Lima disclosed on Thursday that the second part of the investigation into the Mamasapano massacre will touch on the alleged involvement of American forces in the law enforcement mission gone awry.
"We are awaiting the results on part two of our investigation ... This would include the alleged involvement of some Americans," De Lima told lawmakers at the House of Representatives budget briefing of DOJ.
She added that the Justice department's fact-finding team is also expected to give a report on the possible liability of Police Officer 2 Christopher Lalan of the Special Action Force's (SAF) 55th Special Action Company, who was singled out by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for allegedly killing four combatants of the Moro rebel group while the victims were sleeping.
De Lima said she is expecting the report of the fact-finding team within the month.
The clash between SAF and MILF forces merged with other factional and rebel armed groups on January 25 in the town Mamasapano, Maguindanao Province resulted in the death of at least 44 police commandos, 17 MILF members and five civilians.
The first part of the inquiry looked into how exactly 35 PNP-SAF commandos forming the blocking force in Barangay Tukanalipao were annihilated by combined forces of the MILF, its breakaway Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and other private armed groups, as they retreated from the marshy area where they tried to arrest the international terrorist who went by the nom de guerre Marwan on the basis of warrants from Philippine courts.
In the first part of the case, the panel headed by Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera recommended that 90 MILF, BIFF and private armed group members be charged with murder and theft — the latter charge because the firearms, equipment and personal belongings of the PNP-SAF men were taken from them.
The second part of the Navera team's fact-finding was supposed to cover — besides the death of the nine PNP-SAF commandos who took down Marwan but were themselves later killed — the deaths as well of 18 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members and five civilians.
This took place at Barangay Pidsandawan, Mamasapano, Maguindanao.
The Navera team was also tasked to inquire into the reported participation of US personnel in the operation.
During hearings on the encounter at the House, several lawmakers noted the testimony of an eyewitness on the death of two "Americans" in the clash.
According to Bayan Muna partylist Representative Carlos Zarate, this "proves that the US involvement was more than just advisory and provision of real time intelligence information via its drone operations."
The testimony of the eyewitness, known only by the codename "Marathon," was contained in the report of the National Bureau of Investigation-National Prosecution Service special investigation team.
In its report, the NBI-NPS team also recommended the continued investigation into the extent of US involvement in the Mamasapano operation, arguing that "criminal investigations and national security are not mutually exclusive."
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/115954/de-lima-part-2-of-mamasapano-probe-eyes-us-forces-role
This disinformation regarding the deaths of two Americans was initially coursed through a known Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) front organization who alleged that witness had observed the bodies of two men who looked like Americans.
ReplyDeleteBayan Muna partylist Representative Carlos Zarate uses the allegation to hammer home his anti-US propaganda theme/message carried in the above article. Bayan Muna (People First) is a CPP political front and Carlos Zarate is a long-time CPP activist.