NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – The murmurs outside the courthouse swelled into a wave of sobs and cheers. Families, friends, and supporters clutched each other in a mixture of relief and disbelief. After years of uncertainty and anguish, the so-called “Himamaylan 7” – once accused of murder and frustrated murder – were acquitted.
Inside the Regional Trial Court Branch 61 in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, Judge Rodney Magbanua provided the words that they had long prayed for: the accusations lacked sufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The defendants – Pastor Jimie Teves, Jodito Montesino, Jaypee Romano, Jasper Aguyong, Rogen Sabanal, Eliseo Andres, and Rodrigo Medez – listened, some with visible emotion, as their long ordeal came to a close.
There was an eighth defendant, Susan Medez, who added a late twist to the case. Unlike the others, she was not among the seven initially placed behind bars in 2019, a year after the cases were filed. Her arrest came years later, in 2023, when she was swept into the same charges.
On Monday, however, Susan’s fate aligned with the rest – she, too, was acquitted, her name cleared together with the seven.
Deadly ambush
The cases stemmed from a deadly ambush on May 12, 2018, in the village of Tan-awan, along the boundaries of Kabankalan and Himamaylan cities, where two soldiers were killed, and seven others wounded in an ambush staged against troops from the Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion.
The soldiers killed in the ambush were Private First Class Vicente Marcon and Sergeant Sandy Arevalo.
The wounded soldiers included Private John Daryle Delgado, Corporal Michael Besana, Private First Class Voltaire Catamin, Private Joven Taghap, Private First Class Kenneth Cerbo, Private Ryan Las Piñas, and Corporal Angelito Barega.
The military subsequently pointed fingers at the accused, tagging them members of the New People’s Army (NPA) who were allegedly involved in the attack. But from the outset, the evidence appeared shaky.
The military’s initial report about the incident initially stated that the perpetrators were “unidentified.” Yet, months later, the names of the “Himamaylan 7” surfaced. What followed was a narrative laced with inconsistencies – testimonies from soldiers claiming prior familiarity with the accused conflicted with earlier reports.
Inconsistency
Gorgonio said the prosecution failed to prove that the defendants were the perpetrators of the ambush. He noted that the military blotter report following the incident stated the assailants were unidentified.
He also pointed out that the military only released the names of the accused four months after the ambush.
During the initial hearing, the wounded soldiers testified that they recognized their assailants, claiming they had previously interacted with them during the Community Support Program (CSP) in the accused’s community.
Gorgonio said the court questioned the testimonies because of an inconsistency: if the soldiers knew the assailants, why did the Army blotter report list the suspects as unidentified?
The inconsistency in identifying the perpetrators led the court to acquit the group, Gorgonio said.
He said United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) Pastor Jimie Medez, one of the accused, was long subjected to red-tagging because of his active role in organizing farmers and indigenous peoples (IPs) as part of the church’s social ministry.
Church victory
Meanwhile, UCCP Bishop Fely Tenchavez said the court’s decision was a victory for their church members, who she said had been falsely charged and subjected to attacks for carrying out their ministry of helping the marginalized.
“This ruling is significant not only for the UCCP but also for other religious groups and sectors facing similar charges,” Tenchavez said.
“Since the establishment of the church, it has been subjected to attacks and labeled as communists. But now we have proven that we are not communists. We are simply serving the needy and marginalized,” she said.
Tenchavez called on the government to protect those working to improve society, especially in rural areas.
“Let’s not argue or fight anymore, let’s rather unite and continue our advocacy of serving the marginalized,” Tenchavez said.
The UCCP released a statement, part of which read: “In the face of repression, we will not remain silent. We will continue our prophetic ministry, striving for a world where justice, compassion, and righteousness prevail. For we know that the chains binding all political prisoners are not just chains of steel – they are chains of fear, silence, and complicity.” – Rappler.com
