17 more suspects in Espino ambush charged
OUT of 29 suspects identified in the September 11, 2019 ambush of former Fifth District Congressman Amado Espino Jr., 17 were added to the first batch already charged for murder, frustrated murder and attempted murder before the court. The 17, most of whom were earlier identified as John Does were believed to have planned and financed the ambush that wounded Espino and killed two of his security aides.
In a radio interview on Aksyon Radyo Dagupan, P/Colonel Redrico Maranan, police provincial director of Pangasinan, said the charges were recommended by a panel of prosecutors formed by the Department of Justice that studied all the evidence presented by the police, particularly the Special Investigation Task Force Espino.
P/Lt. Colonel Frqanklin Ortiz, chief of police of San Carlos City named the 17 suspects as Armando Friaz, Sherwin Diaz, Ricky Arambulo, Pong Tamondong, Cesar Agbayani, Arnulfo Alipio, Ronald Anthony Romero, Eernesto Agbayani, Bimbo Palisoc, one alias Fidel Kalbo, one Ruseller alias “Sel”, Ernesto Oniong Friaz and five John Does.
Ortiz said the filing of cases against the suspects is a good development because the panel of prosecutors gave weight to the evidence presented by the police.
He said they are now waiting for the court to issue the warrants of arrests against all the suspects so that a manhunt could be launched against them.
The initial batch of suspects included the late former Board Member Raul Sison but his name has been dropped from the list after he died from COVID-19 last March this year.
The other suspects who were initially charged earlier were Albert Palisoc, Bennie Resultan, Joey Ferrer, Alfred Pascarfan, Ronnie de los Santos, Teofilo Ferrer and John Regalado, tagged as the registered owner of one of the get-away car used by the suspects in their escape, who was recently arrested by the Pangasinan police in Quezon City.
In that ambush, Espino was wounded and his bodyguard P/Sergeant Richard Esguerra and driver-bodyguard Agapito Guison were killed. Also wounded was Kerwin Marpori while Anthony Columbino, another security aide, was unscathed. (Leonardo Micua/Nora Dominguez)
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