10th Infantry Division has asked the Special Operations Command (Socom) to look into the roles of two Scout Rangerswho reportedly shot an 11-year-old boy in Sitio Mitondo, Barangay Sibulan in Toril District last April 1.
Meanwhile, the seven members of the elite 6th Scout Rangers, whose names were withheld pending the result of the investigation, have been placed on restrictive custody at the 2nd Scout Rangers Battalion in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.
Maj. Gen. Rafael Valencia, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, said they have endorsed the case to the Socom headquarters in Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija as it overseas the Scout Rangers. Valencia said they could not yet conclude whether the soldiers committed wrongdoings.
He said that the division is saddened and they sympathized with the family of Daniel Ferrer, the victim of the incident, as members of the Scout Ranger unit initiated a “pass the hat” to raise money as immediate financial assistance for the burial of the victim.
The Socom investigation, the official added, will not preclude any investigation that maybe conducted by other agencies as the Commission on Human Rights also has already conducted investigation of the incident.
A source from the Investigation Section in CHR –XI, who asked not to be named for lack of authority to speak on the case, said that they already received a report of the incident.
“It is just the same process,” the officer said. “We will investigate on the matter to know if there is a human rights violation.”
The case was referred to them by a representative from National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP).
According to the report, Ferrer and his uncle, Danilo Adang Pili, 43, a former member of the Civilan Armed Forces Geographical Unit, were gathering some wood to be used in the construction of the house of Danilo when they were fired upon around 10:30 a.m., April 1.
Danilo dropped and crawled while his nephew ran away. Around 30 minutes later, when he could not find the boy, Danilo returned to the area but the boy was nowhere to be found.
According to the soldiers’ version of the events, they were on security patrol when they saw one man carrying a long firearm, which prompted them to fire.
The soldiers found the “rifle” left by Danilo, which turned out to be an air gun.
On Saturday, personnel from the 39th Infantry Battalion turned over Daniel’s body to the Cafgu detachment under the 72nd Infantry Battalion in Sitio Lawaon, Purok 7, Barangay Sibulan.
The boy’s body was turned over to his family in Barangay Colorado.
Supt. Jed Clamor, commander of the Toril Police Precinct, said the boy’s mother and uncle personally came to his office on Saturday morning to report the incident.
“He (Danilo) really didn’t see who fired at them, but the ones who brought the body were soldiers,” the police officer said.
On Saturday morning, the two Scout Rangers visited the family, accompanied by the troops of the 84th Infantry Battalion, to try to come up with a settlement.
“We are also waiting for the family to discuss whether they will file a case or not,” he said.
Reportedly, the victim’s family executed an affidavit of desistance and was given P100,000 in the presence of personnel from the NCIP and a lawyer.
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