CANDON, Ilocos Sur — A police officer and four of his men are now on the hot seat, with a female lawyer hounding them for seizing four firearms from Eric C. Comiso and failing to report the same in his return of the search warrant to Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 23 here in 2003.
Comiso filed a complaint for malversation through falsification of public documents against Chief Insp. Rolando Osias, SPO3 Blas Bermisa, SPO1 Roger Valdez, PO3 Rolando Marinas and PO3 Mervyn Raquino on May 7, 2005 upon learning that of the four guns seized from him during a raid in sitio La Loma, San Antonio, Narvacan, Ilocos Sur, in January 2003, only one was properly reported to Judge Gavino Balbin of RTC Branch 23.
He was surprised to learn that only the cal. .45 Charles Daly pistol with serial number CNO 12597 was reported even as three other firearms were confiscated— a cal. .45 Gold Cup with SN GTC 037171, a 5.56 Armalite rifle with SN 179376 and a 9 mm Beretta pistol with serial number 100577.
Speaking through counsel Estelita Cordero, Comiso said Osias violated the return of the search warrant since he reported only the confiscation of a single firearm.
The three other firearms were deposited with the Regional Crime Laboratory 1 of the Philippine National Police (PNP) at Camp Oscar Florendo in San Fernando City, La Union from Jnauary 2003 until Osias went there on November 27, 2003 and presented an alleged order dated January 24, 2003 from the Municipal Trial Court in Cities (MTCC) of Vigan City ordering the release of the firearms to the custody of the MTCC, through Osias. (MNB)
