The murder case of retired Army Col. Samuel G. Afdal, former president of Philsaga Mining Corp., was transferred to the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 5 in Quezon City in February this year due to safety and security concerns of the Afdal family and the witnesses.
Lawyer Romel Fontanilla, one of the legal counsels of the Afdal family, on Friday said that the transfer was carried out by virtue of an order from the Supreme Court (SC).
“Arraignment has been set. Pre-trial has been conducted and trial will resume,” said Fontanilla in a press conference held at The Royal Mandaya Hotel.
Lawyer Xilexferen Barroga said the Afdal family requested for the transfer of the venue or change of venue technically from Agusan del Sur to any court in Manila or Quezon City. However, the SC transferred the case to RTC Quezon City.
Barroga said the main reason was at that time of the request, there were still two John Doe suspects and during the course of the investigation the alleged mastermind, Ryan Mark Baylon, said to have ‘contacts’ in the military.
Barroga also said that there were threats that duly verified the reason for the change of venue.
It can be recalled that on October 26, 2021, Afdal was ambushed in Santa Cruz, Rosario, Agusan del Sur while driving toward an area where he has a mining prospect.
Also in October last year, Afdal’s widow, Evelyn, filed a complaint-affidavit before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in Agusan del Sur against a certain Baylon, who was a business associate of her husband, for allegedly masterminding the ambush.
This after Jeffrey Mamerto, the alleged gunman of Afdal who is now detained at the Agusan del Sur Provincial Jail, implicated two other alleged co-conspirators in the murder, namely, Rosalino B. Degracia and Alemar Awado, claiming that Baylon had coaxed them to ambush Afdal in exchange for money.
Barroga said they learned on Thursday that de Gracia surrendered to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-Davao (CIDG-Davao). He said they have yet to confirm this.
Meanwhile, the Bunawan Police Station in Agusan del Sur is implementing the warrant of arrest against Baylon who is still at large.
Major Ralph Perez, chief of Bunawan Police Station, said authorities are currently conducting an operation to locate Baylon.
“May info kami natanggap for verification but so far wala pa tayong info sa exact location ni Baylon. Rest assured na ginagawa namin ang lahat para mahuli natin ang mga suspects. Sa warrant na natanggap namin nakalagay naman ang address niya sa Bunawan, Agusan del Sur. Pinuntahan namin pero wala siya doon,” Perez said.
Perez admitted that the Bunawan police are facing challenges in arresting Baylon.
“Hindi kasi simpleng tao lang ang suspect. May kakayahan din siya pero lumiliit na ang mundo niya. Yung warrant niya all over the Philippines naman kaya anywhere sa country na makita siya ay huhulihin na talaga siya,” he said.
On the other hand, the Afdal family was consoled with the release of the warrant of arrest against the perpetrators of their patriach’s murder.
In a statement, the Afdal family expressed elation by the recent turn of events in the search for justice for his killing after the court ordered the arrest of the remaining two suspects who are still at large.
“As we said before, this steady grind of justice consoles us even as we struggle to move on from our tragic loss of the kind and gentle SAGA,” the family said.
With the arrest warrant out, the Afdal family is hopeful that the law enforcement agencies will act with dispatch to bring the suspects before the court of law and face justice.
“We also hope and pray that the flow of justice will go on unimpeded,” it said.
The Afdal family expressed their gratitude for the efforts of the Army’s 75th Infantry Battalion, the Death Investigation Division of the National Bureau of Investigation, the Rosario Municipal Police Office, and the Agusan del Sur Provincial Prosecutor’s Office.
