Diokno questions shooting of Marawi siege veteran
Published Apr 23, 2020 12:00 am
By Jeffrey Damicog
Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG) chairman and human rights lawyer Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno on Thursday, April 23, questioned the decision of policemen implementing the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to shoot retired Army Corporal Winston Ragos near a checkpoint in Quezon City.
Chel Diokno (ALBERT GARCIA / MANILA BULLETIN)
“What led the police to point their guns at Cpl. Ragos in the first place? Was he committing or attempting to commit a crime at the time? Was he a threat to the lives of the police or other persons in the area?” asked Diokno in his latest social media posts.
The lawyer noted that Ragos was carrying a sling bag at that time but her sister claimed the retired soldier was not armed.
“The videos circulating in social media show that Cpl. Ragos had his back to the police operatives and his hands in the air for some time before he turned around, faced them, and appeared to reach for something in his sling bag,” Diokno said.
“Why did the police officers not subdue him when his back was facing them and his arms were raised? Wouldn’t that have allowed them to restrain Cpl. Ragos without firing a shot?” asked the lawyer.
He noted that someone in the video was even heard telling police, “Bakit niyo binaril, sir? Dapat kinapkapan niyo muna (Why did you shoot him? You should have frisked him first).”
Diokno also questioned what happened to the sling bag of Ragos. He said the police has yet to confirm that it contained a firearm.
“The Revised PNP (Philippine National Police) Operations Manual provides that it should be the investigator-on-case or the Scene-of-the-Crime-Officer, not the operatives involved in the incident, who should take charge of and process the crime scene,” he cited.
Since Ragos had retired after being part of government forces in retaking Marawi City from terrorist groups in 2019, Diokno also asked if the policemen involved ever considered that the retired soldier may be afflicted with post-trauma stress disorder.
Read more: Ex-soldier shot dead at checkpoint
Chel Diokno (ALBERT GARCIA / MANILA BULLETIN)
“What led the police to point their guns at Cpl. Ragos in the first place? Was he committing or attempting to commit a crime at the time? Was he a threat to the lives of the police or other persons in the area?” asked Diokno in his latest social media posts.
The lawyer noted that Ragos was carrying a sling bag at that time but her sister claimed the retired soldier was not armed.
“The videos circulating in social media show that Cpl. Ragos had his back to the police operatives and his hands in the air for some time before he turned around, faced them, and appeared to reach for something in his sling bag,” Diokno said.
“Why did the police officers not subdue him when his back was facing them and his arms were raised? Wouldn’t that have allowed them to restrain Cpl. Ragos without firing a shot?” asked the lawyer.
He noted that someone in the video was even heard telling police, “Bakit niyo binaril, sir? Dapat kinapkapan niyo muna (Why did you shoot him? You should have frisked him first).”
Diokno also questioned what happened to the sling bag of Ragos. He said the police has yet to confirm that it contained a firearm.
“The Revised PNP (Philippine National Police) Operations Manual provides that it should be the investigator-on-case or the Scene-of-the-Crime-Officer, not the operatives involved in the incident, who should take charge of and process the crime scene,” he cited.
Since Ragos had retired after being part of government forces in retaking Marawi City from terrorist groups in 2019, Diokno also asked if the policemen involved ever considered that the retired soldier may be afflicted with post-trauma stress disorder.
Read more: Ex-soldier shot dead at checkpoint