Marantan hits De Lima for quickly judging his men after incident

MANILA - Police Supt. Hansel Marantan and 10 others charged for multiple murder in the "Atimonan massacre" are now temporarily free after a court issued their release orders yesterday (March 2).

All accused were allowed to post bail of P300,000 each.

In January 2013, Marantan served as the ground commander of a police operation targeting alleged jueteng lord Vic Siman.

Thirteen men, including Siman, were killed at a checkpoint along Maharlika Highway, Atimonan Quezon.

Marantan was shot and injured in the encounter in which he claimed Siman and his group first opened fire.

An investigation by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) revealed the firearms were allegedly moved to show that a shootout occurred.

According to NBI, the encounter was an ambush, not a shootout.

• READ: Initial NBI findings bolster rubout angle

Siman was the intended target, and those riding with him in the SUV were casualties.

Marantan insisted the operation was legitimate.

In an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN News after gaining temporary freedom, Marantan said, “I know better than anyone else dito sa Atimonan case. Alam nila yan, it was a legitimate operation. Ako ang commander ng anti-private armed group. Anong gagawin ng anti-private armed group, ang trabaho ko talaga hulihin sila.”

The bail hearing for Marantan and 10 others took four years.

“We were incarcerated for five years, tapos alam naman namin na from the very start of the case na it’s not murder, there’s no rubout here at we participated in the initial proceedings and we submitted ourselves under the law. Can you just imagine, four years for just the petition for bail?” Marantan said.

Marantan also lamented that then-Justice secretary and now Senator Leila de Lima was quick to judge him and his men.

• READ: De Lima: No shootout in Quezon

“Magta-trial pa tayo, you’re coming out with a conclusive statement already. Sabi niya murder, it’s massacre. These are all conclusive statements pending investigation, you do not do that,” Marantan said.

“Kawawa yung mga tao mo, hahabulin nila ang statements mo. Kawawa din ang mga sibilyan, yung aggrieved parties, mga complainant, pinaasa niyo ang mga tao niyo, murder yan, makukulong si Marantan, pinaasa sila kaya galit na galit sila,” Marantan added.

Marantan vehemently denied he was the mastermind behind the murder of Siman.

He said, “Pano ko ima-mastermind ang isang murder kung hindi ko naman kontrolado ang mga tao ko. For example, sa Army, do I have control with them? Meron sariling chain of command ang mga yan. Tingin mo kaya kong diktahan ang mga yan? Do I have to invite to cover the overt acts of murder para mag-testify sila laban sa akin? That’s so illogical.”

Marantan said, until now the prosecution has not been able to present a witness saying it was the police who fired first.

“Sila ang unang pumutok at wala silang witness na magtuturo na kami ang unang pumutok. I was gunned down first, I was the ground commander, they brought me to the hospital,” he said.

“Yung pagka-gun down ko as ground commander, that resulted to the firefight. Nag-post ka ng serious resistance against the law enforcers, anong gagawin ng mga law enforcers, eh di i-subdue yung superior strength mo. That’s under the POP (police operational procedures). Very clear naman.”

According to Marantan, things are not any different with police operating under the government’s war on drugs where he said, sometimes the law favors the criminals.

“Ang mga high-profile criminals ngayon, mga funded kase yan. Masakit sa mga criminals ngayon, masyado silang iyakin, pag natalo sila sa barilan, takbo sa Commission on Human Rights, sumbong. Takbo kay Sec. De Lima before, magsusumbong. Hindi naman nila imbestigahan, mag-take sides sila kaagad,” he said.

“Kaya advise ko sa mga criminals naman, kapag makipagbarilan kayo sa mga pulis, dapat i-prepare ninyo yung sarili niyo na tamaan din kayo, hindi yung ang preparation ninyo ay makatama sa mga police officer.”

While Marantan and De Lima briefly shared the same detention facility at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center, Marantan said he never saw the senator.

He also said he no longer holds a grudge against her, who is in jail on drug charges.

“Naaawa din ako sa kanya pero I cannot comment on that, kasi hindi ko rin talaga alam ang nangyari sa kanya. There was no chance na magkita kami. Kung tinatanong niyo kung galit ako, wala na akong galit. I was incarcerated for 4 years, anong matututunan ko dyan eh di magpatawad sa kanila. There’s no bitterness in my heart, no anger in my soul. Tapos na ko diyan,” Marantan said.

In an interview with DZMM this morning, the wife of one of the Atimonan rubout casualties said the victims’ relatives are unhappy about the temporary freedom given to the police.

“Nanghihinayang kami. Sayang ang apat na taong binuno namin,” the wife said.