By NITZ ARANCON with
LITO RULONA, Correspondents
AN angry mob nearly lynched the five suspects in the killing of education student Cherrymae Dayo at city hall yesterday afternoon.
Thousands gathered and watched as police brought the five suspects–Warren Amarga, Joan Escalante, Angel Mae Narigua, Joel Jonson, and a minor–to the City Prosecutor’s Office at city hall for inquest proceedings.
The suspects were charged with homicide, rape and robbery.
Dayo’s brother Ricafort stood as the complainant against the five suspects.
Police said there were two witnesses against the suspects.
The complaint was received by prosecutor Hosni Guiling at around 4:30 pm yesterday.
Lawyer Jose Pallugna, counsel for the suspects for purposes of the inquest proceedings, said the prosecutor’s office is expected to determine whether or not there is probable cause to bring the suspects to court today.
Tension gripped city hall as angry people started cursing and yelling at the suspects, telling them they they deserved to be killed as punishment.
People exclaimed: “Patya na, patya na!”
Work at city hall was disrupted and some councilors even went out of their session hall to join curious onlookers.
The 18-year old Escalante, one of the suspects, reportedly suffered a miscarriage after being chased by an angry mob. She was receiving medical treatment at presstime.
The other female suspect, 22-year old Rada, is also pregnant.
Dayo, a graduating student at the Southern Philippines College (SPC) who worked as a house caretaker, was allegedly raped, and then stabbed at least four times in the house of the late former councilor Mending Balinado on JR Borja St. near Burgos St. late Friday night.
The working student, who hailed from San Juan, Balingasag town, Misamis Oriental, died past midnight Saturday at the Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC). The knife pierced through her chest and lung.
Divisoria police chief Senior Insp. Maricris Mulat said they decided to include robbery in the complaint because Dayo’s cellphone, laptop and money were found missing.
Mulat told the Gold Star Daily that there were witnesses who claimed to have seen the suspects running from the house where the 30-year old Dayo was attacked.
“They were seen running with some of the items,” she said.
Mulat said it was now up to the prosecutor’s office to determine if all the suspects should be tried in court or not.
“Depende na kini sa prosecutors ang final disposition of the case. Our part is to submit all documents and evidence needed in the filing of the case. Based on the accounts of the witnesses, kadto gyud sila lima,” Mulat said.
As far as the police is concerned, the Dayo case is solved, she said.
Of the five suspects, only the 24-year Amarga confessed to stabbing Dayo although he denied that he raped the victim.
Mulat said the two female suspects–Escalante and Rada–served as lookouts.
Mulat said the 22-year old Jonson was just released from the Lumbia jail where he was detained in connection with a murder case. She said Jonson yielded an empty sachet that was believed to have contained shabu when police arrested the group.
Mulat said the suspects would be subjected to drug test at the National Police’s crime laboratory here.
Police said Amarga, the primary suspect, is believed to be a member of a group behind a series of truck battery theft cases in Barangay Carmen.
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