The Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) based in Inabanga town has dismissed the case of illegal possession of firearms which was filed in 2013 against Alfonso Del Rosario Jr., who ran for mayor but lost in Buenavista, Bohol during last year’s election. MCTC Acting Presiding Judge Jorge D. Cabalit, in his four-page decision, has dismissed the case against Del Rosario, who is represented by lawyer Lord “Popot” Marapo IV, for “lack of probable cause.” The judge, reversing his earlier order dated November 29, 2013 which upheld the validity of the search warrant and established the existence of probable cause, said that the evidence gathered by police officers who searched on a Del Rosario property “are inadmissible in evidence, having been the fruit of a poisonous tree.” The political turmoil in Buenavista had attracted national media attention a week before the May 13, 2013 elections after two CAFGU members, Ruel Torregosa and Auzardi Garcia, were ambushed in front of Del Rosario’s residence. Torregosa was killed while Garcia had survived the attack. In the aftermath of the ambush, police officers, by virtue of a search warrant, scoured the reported compound of Del Rosario and confiscated several high-powered firearms and live ammunitions. Del Rosario, who lost to Buenavista Mayor Ronald Lowell Tirol, was then sued for illegal possession of ammunitions. Lawyer Marapao, in his Urgent Omnibus Motion “to quash the search warrant and/or suppress evidence obtained,” had argued before the court the manner by which the search was conducted had “utterly failed to comply with the mandatory requirement ‘of particularly describing the place to be searched,’ as provided for under Section 4, Rule 126 of the 2000 Rules on Criminal Procedure.”

Del Rosario’s defense counsel had pointed out that compound searched by the police officers is not located at Barangay Cangawa, Buenavista but in Barangay Cantuba of the same town, adding that the compound does not belong to Alfonso but is owned by his brother, Ernesto Del Rosario. The respondent’s lawyer argued that the police officers and their witnesses had personally seen carrying or possessing, “much less firing,” an M16 rifle, caliber .45 pistol, and caliber 30 carbine and other high-powered firearms.” Citing the case of Tan vs Sy Tiong Gue in which the Supreme Court has ruled that “a search warrant may be issued only if there is probable cause in connection with only one specific offense alleged in the application on the basis of the applicant’s personal knowledge and his or her witnesses,” Marapao had stressed that items obtained during an “illegal search” were inadmissible as evidence for the prosecution. Marapao further argued, citing the Supreme Court’s ruling on People vs Martinez (637 SCRA 791), that the “evidence procured on the occasion of an unreasonable search and seizure is deemed tainted for being the proverbial fruit of a poisonous tree and should be excluded.” The court agreed with Marapao. In his resolution, Judge Cabalit has given more weight to the arguments propounded by the defense and ordered the dismissal of the case. (MIKE ORTEGA LIGALIG)