Former policemen Joel M. Nuesca, who was convicted of two counts of murder on Dec. 21, 2020 for killing a woman and her 25-year-old son in Tarlac, died on Tuesday, Nov. 30, at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City.
Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Deputy Director General Gabriel P. Chaclag said Nuesca died at around 6:44 pm at the NBP Hospital.
“He (Nuesca) was brought unconscious to the NBP Hospital by his cell mates at 6:30 p.m. yesterday (Nov. 30, 2021) when they noticed that he collapsed while walking outside the dormitory building,” Chaclag said.
He said Nuesca’s remains have yet to undergo autopsy to determine the cause of death. “Investigation is ongoing to determine if there is foul play in the incident,” he added.
On Aug. 26, 2021, Judge Stela Marie Q. Gandia-Asuncion of Paniqui regional trial court in Tarlac found Nuesca “guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder (two counts) as defined and penalized in Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code” for the deaths of Sonia Gregorio and her son Frank Anthony Gregorio who were 53 and 25 years of age, respectively, when the crime took place.
Nuesca was sentenced to life imprisonment for each count. He was also ordered to pay the heirs of the victims in each count P100,000 as civil indemnity; P100,000 as moral damages; P100,000 as exemplary damages; P126,280 as actual damages; and P50,000 as temperate damages with interest rate of six percent per annum from the finality of the decision until full paid.
The judge cited that among the pieces of evidence presented by the prosecution was the mobile phone video recording of the incident that went viral online.
“Witness Allyza Kate Calosing, the person who took the video, was presented as witness of the prosecution. The witness testified and identified, fully explained and authenticated the video recording she made,” the judge said.
Also in her decision, the judge – citing a Supreme Court ruling – said: “Never has homicide or murder been a function of law enforcement. The public peace is never predicated on the cost of human life.”