THE Office of the President has dismissed the administrative charges for grave misconduct and serious irregularity in the performance of duty filed against Colonel Hansel M. Marantan, now the Davao City Police Office chief in connection with the January 6, 2013 ‘Atimonan Shootout’ ‘for lack of substantial evidence,” the Journal Group learned on Thursday.

Executive Secretary Lucas P. Bersamin, by authority of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. issued the decision last February 5 saying that ‘in the end, this Office is duty-bound to clear PCol. Marantan in view of the absence of substantial evidence to hold him liable.’

Copies of the Malacanang decision were furnished to PNP chief, General Rommel Francisco D. Marbil, Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Juanito Victor C. Remulla and the National Appelate Board of the National Police Commission.

ES Bersamin said the recommendation of the National Appelate Board reversing the previous decisions of the Chief,PNP is hereby adopted.

“The 05 March 2014 Decision and the 29 September 2014 Resolution in IAS Administrative Case No. IAS-13-010 issued by the Chief,PNP and the 20 November 2016 Decision and the 16 December 2017 Resolution in IAS Administrative Case No. IAS-13-077 likewise issued by the Chief,PNP are hereby reversed and set aside. The complaints against Police Colonel Hansel M. Marantan are dismissed for lack of substantial evidence,” ES Bersamin said in his decision, a copy of which was furnished to the Journal Group.

The administrative cases stemmed from the killing of 13 people, one of them a police lieutenant colonel during a gunbattle with police and military troops manning a checkpoint in Atimonan, Quezon on January 6, 2013 wherein then Superintendent Marantan was also seriously wounded and hospitalized for months.

Marantan was ordered dismissed during the conduct of an administrative investigation even as he maintained that the 2013 shootout was a ‘legitimate one’ wherein they were forced to defend themselves from armed occupants of two vehicles they flagged down.’

“PCol. Marantan is not liable for serious irregularity in the performance of duty and for grave misconduct. PCol. Marantan substantially complied with the procedures and requirements for an authorized checkpoint given the circumstance obtaining at that time. While in the performance of his duty, PCol. Marantan was seriously injured by offenders who refused to recognize the checkpoint. Thereafter, police and military personnel exercised reasonable force to overcome the unlawful aggressors,” ES Bersamin noted.

“This Office must be mindful of the circumstances under which the operation was carried out and that decisions had to be made in real time. It is not an impartial tribunal’s prerogative to require perfection post-facto as operational decisions should not be adjudged purely in hindsight,” the Executive Secretary explained.

Records showed that around 1 p.m. of January 6, 2013, Marantan sought the establishment of a three-layered checkpoint manned by a combination of PNP and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) personnel in Quezon province.

The first layer of the checkpoint was set up along Barangay Tanauan in Plaridel, Quezon; the second and main checkpoint along Bgy. Lumutan in Atimonan municipality; and the 3rd layer checkpoint located some 500 meters away from the second.

At around 3:20 p.m. of the day, two black Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), one bearing “PNPA 88” and “VIC 27” vanity plates and another with Conduction Sticker B18864, disregarded and ignored the first checkpoint and overtook the vehicles ahead of them while making a counter-flow.

As the two SUVs approached the main checkpoint, they flashed their lights and seemed intent on ignoring the barricade that was established by the joint elements of the PNP and AFP.

The AFP truck was moved to block the two SUVs. When Marantan approached the vehicles, a gunfire ensured. As a result, Marantan was shot on both his legs and his left arm.

After the exchange of gunfire ceased, 11 passengers of the SUVs lay dead while two others were declared dead on arrival at the hospital.

Recovered from the occupants of the two SUVs were one M16 rifle, one M14, 11 caliber 45 pistols, one caliber .9mm handgun, magazines and ammunitions, personal belongings, 117 spent assorted cartridge cases, one slug, two live bullets of caliber 5.56mm and 22 live rounds of caliber .45, and cash amounting to almost P300,000.00.

Seven of the 11 passengers of the SUVs tested positive for gunpowder nitrates on their hands, the court said.

The PNP Internal Affairs Service (IAS) conducted a motu proprio investigation on the matter and on January 23, 2013 issued a Pre-Charge Evaluation Report finding probable cause to formally charge PCol.Marantan and other PNP personnel involved in the incident with Serious Irregularity in the Performance of Duty.

On March 5, 2014, the Malacanang decision said that then PNP chief, Director General Alan LM Purisima, rendered a judgment’ in Administrative Case No. IAS-13-010 (IAS-13-010) finding PCol. Marantan and the other respondents therein culpable as charged, meting upon them the penalty of dismissal from the service

In turn, PCol. Marantan filed a motion for reconsideration which was denied in the 29 September 2014 Resolution of the Chief, PNP. He then filed an appeal to the National Appellate Board (NAB).

According to the Palace decision, “PCol. Marantan’s appeal revolves around the contentions that the charge sheet is jurisdictionally flawed; the resolution is not supported by evidence; that the disciplinary authority committed acts prejudicial to their constitutional rights and substantial interests; and the imposition of the penalty is contrary to the application of penalties mandated by the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) Memorandum Circular No. 2007-001.

During the pendency of the above-mentioned administrative case before the PNP, two other administrative cases were filed: Administrative Case No. IAS-13-077 (IAS-13-077) for Grave Misconduct against PCol.

Marantan and others, and Administrative Case No. IAS-13-080 (IAS-13-080) for Less Grave Neglect of Duty against other PNP personnel.

On November 20, 2016, while IAS-13-010 was pending with the NAB, then PNP chief, now Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ M. dela Rosa issued the assailed decision for IAS-13-077 and IAS-13-080 and found Marantan liable for Grave Misconduct in IAS-13-077 and was ordered dismissed from service.

Again, PCol. Marantan moved for reconsideration, which was denied in the 16 December 2017 Joint Resolution® of the Chief, PNP. PCol. Marantan appealed the decision in IAS-13-077 to the NAB, which rendered a recommendatory decision, jointly deciding the separate appeals for the administrative cases (IAS-13-010 and IAS-13-077).

The dispositive portion of the NAB decision granted the appeal of Col. Marantan and his co-accused and reversed and set aside the decision of dela Rosa dismissing them from the service.

“This Office affirms the findings of the NAB, except as to the application of res judicata. There is no res judicata nor forum shopping This Office finds that the subject administrative cases, specifically as to PCol. Marantan, did not satisfy all the requisites of res judicata nor was forum shopping committed,” the Malacanang decision said.

It explained that the “the elements of res judicata are: (1) the judgment sought to bar the new action must be final; (2) the decision must have been rendered by a court having jurisdiction over the subject matter and the parties; (3) the disposition of the case must be a judgment on the merits; and (4) there must be as between the first and second action, identity of parties, subject matter, and causes of action.”

ES Bersamin said they gave “credence to the findings of the NAB in that there was substantial compliance with the rules and requirements set by thePNP for checkpoints under the given factual circumstances.

“There was a firm and demonstrable effort to fully comply with the required standards, prevented only by special circumstances not attributable to any fault or negligence on the part of PCol. Marantan. The urgency of the situation, coinciding with the unavailability of a full complement of personnel due to the holiday break and insufficient number of marked vehicles due to the upcoming elections made it impossible to strictly comply with all the requirements for checkpoints within the time constraints provided.In any case, PCol. Marantan ensured that there were sufficient markings and signages indicating the purpose of the operation, as well as the active and visible participation of the AFP at the checkpoints, including a marked military vehicle, to make it instantly clear and recognizable to the public that the checkpoints were parts of a legitimate government operation,” the decision said.

“The alleged failure to wear proper uniforms was again justified by the circumstances prevailing as intelligence officers in civilian attire. and even some officers on off-duty, were required to participate on extremely short notice due to the shortage of personnel. Having established the validity of the checkpoints, their value as evidence of an overarching plan to neutralize the passengers of the vehicle has been rendered nil. There was unlawful aggression and reasonable force employed to overcome the offenders,” it added.

AUTHOR PROFILE

Alfred P. Dalizon