by Miriam G. Desacada
San Isidro (Leyte) town Mayor Remedio “Bebot” Balmoria Veloso and three co-respondents, his relatives, have asked the assistant provincial prosecutor in Calubian, Leyte to dismiss the murder charge recently filed against them by the CIDG for lack of probable cause.
The mayor and three co-respondents (his brother Emmanuel “Wing-wing” Balmoria Veloso, Cayetano “Tanny” Balmoria Dagandan and Manuelito “Opaw” Balmoria Sidaya), submitted their counter-affidavits denying all allegations that implicate them to the killing of the late municipal administrator Levi “Bambam” Mabini on May 8, 2019, at the height of the election period.
The four respondents denied the allegations of three purported witnesses, whose judicial affidavits earlier submitted formed part of the bases in the filing of the murder complaint against them by the CIDG, represented by P/Corporal Mike Yawehil Palma and P/Captain Liberato Yorpo.
They assailed the testimonies of the “witnesses” as hearsay, biased, false and malicious motivated by personal grudges and politics.
Wing-wing said that the witnesses’ affidavits reveal that these “are inconsistent, contrary to human nature and lacking of the necessary details to establish probable cause” against them (respondents).
Wing-wing pointed out that one the so-called witnesses, his cousin Jed Granados, did not mention he actually saw the killing of Bambam right inside the gasoline station owned by the town’s former mayor.
Jed had a grudge against him, Wing-wing said, for supporting the opponent of Jed for mayorship of Leyte town, and of not backing the candidacy of the other witness, Edgar Veloso dela Rosa, who ran for councilor at the time.
Mayor Bebot added that Jed was “irked when he refused to give him projects,” and was refused to grant a franchise of the town’s cockpit.
“Their (Granados and dela Rosa) becoming witnesses in the complaint are not motivated by truth and justice but by ill-will and frustration,” said Wing-wing in his counter-affidavit.
Wing-wing said that the third “witness,” Zello Veloso, was a police officer who, if he was actually privy to the plot to kill Bambam, did not tell the CIDG investigator whatever knowledge he had at the time to resolve the killing incident considering his being a police officer.
Zello was earlier relieved from his post in San Isidro PNP and was reassigned to the Palo PNP due to some cases of misbehavior. Wing-wing said he (Zello) thought that it was Mayor Bebot and him who was behind the reassignment,” the reason of the grudge.
“Why only now?” asked Wing-wing of the three’s motivation to testify, after almost four years since the Bambam killing. There was no explanation on why they decided to speak only now, Wing-wing told the media in an interview.
Court documents obtained by the media in relation to the Bambam killing of 2019, the murder charges were filed against a certain Arnel Labastida and two John Does, but these were dismissed due to lack of probable cause.
The next similar complaint was later filed against Wing-wing and Mayor Bebot’s son, Rem Beryl, who is now a lawyer, but again got junked at the prosecutor’s level.
This is now the third filing of complaint over the same murder case, and this time it is against Mayor Bebot, Wing-wing, Tanny, and Opaw—all Balmoria relatives.
During the press conference, Wing-wing bared his intention to run as an opposition for the district’s congressional post currently held by Rep. Anna Victoria Veloso, the daughter of the Veloso patriarch, Ching Veloso, who was the district’s representative in the past years.
“If I am still alive by 2025, I will certainly file my candidacy for congressman against them (the Velosos),” said Wing-wing to reporters.
Mayor Bebot attributed politics as the motive behind the Bambam killing, thus hinting that whoever might cross the political path of those in power are putting themselves threatened species. “Violence in the 3rd district started in 2016, due to politics,” said the mayor.
The murder complaint filed against him and his three relatives was described by the mayor as “politically motivated,” and that the constituents of the district know who are the persons behind this,” he said, while refusing to name names.
His being implicated in the murder complaint, came on the heels of the ambush-slay of his sister, the sexagenarian Juanita, who was gunned down on December 21, last year.
“We (and Wing-wing) are still mourning over the killing of our sister, and crying for justice,” and then came this ridiculous complaint, which is another form of harassment, said the mayor, in another press con with his son, lawyer Rem Beryl, and legal panel head, lawyer Reden Villordon.
Bebot added that this murder complaint arose shortly after Wing-wing announced, in one occasion, that he will be running for congressman of the district.
The mayor and his co-respondents, after submitting their counter-affidavits, are now waiting for the resolution of the prosecution over the case. —Miriam G. Desacada