Hazing rites that killed Atio Castillo took place at Aegis Juris frat office

 Entertainment
Oct 072017
 

John Paul Solano, one of the primary suspects in the death of University of Sto. Tomas law student hazing victim Horacio Castillo III takes his oath during the Senate inquiry on Castillo’s death, Monday. Some senators are now pushing for a total ban on hazing.(MNS photo)

MANILA, Sept 26 (Mabuhay) — Freshman law student Horacio Castillo III underwent hazing rites that cost his life at the office of the fraternity that recruited him, according to the Manila Police District (MPD).

Excerpts of the complaint filed by the MPD before the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday against 18 individuals indicated that the initiation rites were held at the Aegis Juris Foundation Office on Laon-Laan and Navarra Streets near the University of Santo Tomas (UST).

The complaint said the rites occurred between 12 midnight and 8 a.m. of September 17.

Witnesses said they heard some “unusual noise” from people apparently having a drinking session inside the Aegis headquarters.

Hours later, CCTV footage installed beside the Aegis Juris office showed that “a member was noticed hurriedly running towards the direction of the Aegis Juris office while another, [who] was observed busy using his cellular phone, appeared to be worried.”

The police said that based on CCTV footage, John Paul Solano was part of the convoy that brought Castillo from the Aegis Juris Foundation office to the Chinese General Hospital.

Solano earlier claimed he brought Castillo to the hospital after he saw the latter’s body on a sidewalk in Balut, Tondo.

“John Paul Solano, later established and confirmed to be also a member of the Aegis Juris Fraternity, concocted a fabricated story, disguised himself as a good Samaritan, to deliberately and maliciously mislead the police investigators to cover up the crime [that] was committed,” the complaint read.

Authorities had confirmed that Castillo, a student of the UST Faculty of Civil Law, died of a massive heart attack possibly due to the injuries he suffered from hazing.

Solano had adm

itted that he was a member of the fraternity, but said that he did not participate in the initiation rites of Castillo. (MNS)

Two and a half years!

 Economy
Jan 022014
 
Two and a half years!

That’s right… P-Noy only has two and a half years left in his term. But in practical terms, he has less time than that. He only has this year and the first half of 2015 to get any thing worthwhile done… one and a half years to go. Election fever will afflict the country starting the second half of next year and through the first half of 2016. Based on past experience, nothing much for the good of the country gets done during an election year. P-Noy started off his term on a very high note. There was hope that finally the country’s economy has a good chance to become a tiger like its neighbors in Asean. And things started well as P-Noy was seen as the exact opposite of the immediate past president, Gloria Arroyo on that long festering problem of corruption. P-Noy’s credibility in the good governance arena was enough to gain the confidence of the foreign economic and political analysts. Even if the Daang Matuwid battle cry has not produced palpable results beyond the Presidential pronouncements, folks were ready to take P-Noy at his word. Indeed, we found ourselves among those considered as a most promising emerging economy in no time. It was as if everyone had always recognized the outstanding economic potential of the Philippines and it was only the sheer corruption of its governing politicians that is holding us back. We got successive credit rating upgrades. Foreign investors looking for alternatives to the developed world’s equity markets Read More …

CCTV camera fails to catch latest NAIA intruder

 News
Jan 012014
 
CCTV camera fails to catch latest NAIA intruder

A man believed to be mentally ill breached the security fence of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 on Monday night and was able to get near a plane. In a phone interview with GMA News Online on Wednesday, Civil Security Officer Luis Cometa of the NAIA Terminal Police Division said airport security personnel were alerted at around 9:45 p.m. Monday about a man seen standing near a Kuwaiti Airlines plane parked at Bay 4. Airport security officials apprehended the man, identified as Marcelo Maligalig, a resident of Taguig City. Initial investigation showed that he was a mental patient who has been repeatedly confined at the National Center for Mental Health (NCMH) in Mandaluyong City. “Hindi naman siya nag-cause ng disruption sa airport o naging threat sa mga pasahero. Nakalapit lang siya sa aircraft,” Cometa said of Maligalig. Maligalig, who was carrying several identification cards bearing his name, was eventually turned over to his sister, policewoman Christine Maligalig of Southern Police District. NAIA reportedly has no CCTV cameras around the perimeter fence where Maligalig climbed. But an airport official speaking on condition of anonymity said there are CCTV cameras installed in the area but the incident was not recorded because the area was too dark. General Jesus Gordon Descanzo, manager of the airport police department, also said there are CCTV cameras installed at Terminal 1, although he was uncertain if they are still working. “Hindi ko alam kung gumagana pa yung nakakabit doon dahil subject for rehabilitation na Read More …

SM mall did not comply with 2013 security pact – police

 News
Dec 162013
 
SM mall did not comply with 2013 security pact – police

Robbers use hammers to steal jewelry in SM North EDSA. Security personnel of SM North EDSA cordon off the crime scene where a so-called “martilyo gang” struck on Sunday night, stealing jewelry on display and causing shoppers to panic. Jun Veneracion, GMA News Mall security measures forged nearly a year ago in the aftermath of another martilyo gang heist were not implemented and may have made the jewelry robbery on Sunday at the SM North EDSA mall easier for the suspects to carry out, the Philippine National Police said. PNP officials said procedures on the sale of hardware and the provision of improved CCTV security camera systems were among the measures that were apparently not taken seriously. The PNP said hardware purchased inside the malls were supposed to have been turned over to buyers outside the mall premises. Higher-resolution CCTV systems and constant monitoring of security videos were also agreed upon months ago, but the PNP said the poor quality of the video footage of the heist last Sunday is a clear indicator of the lack of compliance. Grainy video of the Sunday robbery and a receipt showed that the suspects used a hammer and a crowbar purchased in the mall. The MOA, which was forged with the Mall Security Managers Association, provided that shoppers who bought tools like hammers  would claim their purchased items outside the mall, Raffy Tima reported on GMA News TV’s State of the Nation with Jessica Soho Monday evening. The agreement was struck in the Read More …

Mindanao solon wants CCTV cameras installed in BoC, BIR and other gov’t agencies

 Entertainment
Aug 062013
 

MANILA (Mabuhay) — As part of the campaign against graft and corruption, a Mindanao lawmaker over the weekend proposed the installation of high definition Close Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras in all government offices, counters and booths that handle cash transactions especially in agencies like the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue […]

JBC wraps up interviews for Sandiganbayan top post; lawyer disqualified

 News
Jun 212013
 
JBC wraps up interviews for Sandiganbayan top post; lawyer disqualified

The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) on Friday concluded its two-day public interviews of the second and final batch of candidates for the vacated Sandiganbayan presiding justice post. The conclusion of the interviews came with the “disqualification” of one of the 10 candidates—Jasper Lucero, a private lawyer—for failing to submit necessary documents needed before the interview. The last two candidates to face the JBC panel were a Sandiganbayan justice who wants closed-circuit television cameras during anti-graft trials, and a Justice undersecretary who had previously applied in other plum judicial posts. During his interview, Justice Alex Quiroz said it was his “dream” to have Sandiganbayan proceedings open to the public through CCTV cameras and the internet. “I have a dream should I be appointed. Since criminal proceedings in open court should be in public, it is my wish that a court be covered by a CCTV [camera] and the same would be connected to the Internet,” he told the panel, led by JBC chair Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. He also said he wanted to cut down the Sandiganbayan’s use of paper by 30 percent in a bid to turn it into a “paperless” anti-graft court. “I’ve been with the prosecution. Now, I’m in the judiciary so I’ve seen all those aspects,” said Quiroz, the fifth most junior member of the Sandiganbayan. “I don’t think there is any applicant (who) possesses such credentials as being a prosecutor, being at the Office of the Solicitor General, then judiciary,” added the 55-year-old Quiroz. Read More …

8 PH international airports to get security cameras—CAAP

 News
Feb 062013
 

By Jerome Aning Philippine Daily Inquirer 6:33 pm | Wednesday, February 6th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said Wednesday it has allocated P100 million for the installation of closed-circuit television cameras in the immigration areas of eight alternative international airports in the country. CAAP Director General William Hotchkiss III said the installation of the surveillance camera systems was in line with the agency’s safety and security program for all Philippine airports. According to Hotchkiss, CAAP will be signing this month an agreement with the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (Iacat) which would co-manage the operation of the CCTV systems that would record goings-on at the immigration counters. “The agreement is a joint effort by the Iacat and the CAAP designed to enhance airports’ capability in monitoring passengers and other airport users’ movement in the immigration areas,” Hotchkiss said in a statement. The eight airports are the Clark International Airport in Pampanga; Francisco Bangoy International Airport in Davao City; Iloilo International Airport; Bacolod–Silay International Airport; Kalibo International Airport; Puerto Princesa International Airport; Zamboanga International Airport; and Laoag International Airport. Under the agreement, CAAP will provide funding for the surveillance equipment through competitive bidding while Iacat will co-manage the operations of the integrated surveillance systems. The Iacat, composed of five government agencies and three private-sector representatives, is tasked with crafting and implementing policies to stop trafficking in persons. There have been allegations that unscrupulous immigration and airport officials are conniving with traffickers to allow in and out of the Read More …