The Supreme Court has reversed the resolution of then Justice Secretary Simeon Datumanong that cleared a Nueva Ecija cop and barangay captain of murder in 2003.

In a decision written by Associate Justice Diosdado M. Peralta, the SC Third Division ordered Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera to direct the City Prosecutor of Manila to prosecute SP01 Roel D. Acosta and Numeriano Sapiandante for murder and withdraw the motion it earlier filed before a Manila court withdrawing the murder charges against the two suspects.

The lower court has suspended the issuance of arrest warrants against Acosta and Numeriano pending resolution of the petition filed by the heirs of the victim assailing the resolution of the DoJ Secretary dismissing their complaint for insufficiency of evidence.

“We find that the DoJ committed a manifest error in finding no probable cause to charge respondents with the crime of murder,” the SC ruled.

Records show that the victim, Bernadette M. Dimatulac was watching television inside the church of the Kaibigan Foundation, Inc. in Barangay San Mariano, Sta. Rosa, Nueva Ecija on the night of May 4, 2000 when Acosta who was armed with a gun approached the victim and shot her repeatedly.

Sapiandante who drove the getaway vehicle and Acosta were positively identified by witnesses.

However, upon review Datumanong doubted the testimony of witnesses resulting in the dismissal of the murder case.

“The matter of assigning value to the declaration of a witness is best done by the trial court which can assess such testimony in the light of the demeanor, conduct and attitude of the witness at the trial stage,” the SC said.