MANILA – Veteran soldier Corporal Winston Ragos who was shot by a cop in a Covid-19 checkpoint in Quezon City on April 21 may soon get justice that he deserves.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) announced Thursday, June 4, that it has filed charges of murder, perjury, and planting of evidence against Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo. The suspect who was manning a checkpoint at Barangay Pasong Putik, said that he thought Ragos was pulling out a gun from his sling bag after a heated altercation with his colleagues for alleged violation of quarantine protocols.
This was confirmed by NBI deputy director Ferdinand Lavin in an interview with the media saying that appropriate charges were lodged at the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office for preliminary investigation, a move that was appreciated by the Philippine Army. Ragos was discharged from service for mental issue after he was assigned in Marawi during the Marawi siege in 2016. He got a formal military funeral at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.
A few neighbors of Ragos who knew his mental health situation and who happened to witness the incident called the attention of police officers before the shooting incident but to no avail. Rago’s mother said her 34-year old son had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and had been dealing with some mental health issues when he returned from battle.
Lavin hopes the development of the case will be the first bold step in the quest of justice for Ragos and his family. “Through this, we hope we can at least honor his sacrifices to the nation he served,” he said.
Aside from the NBI, the Commission on Human Rights also made its own investigation of the case after it was caught in CCTV and public condemnation was mounting. Likewise, Army Chief Lt. General Gilbert Gapay also ordered the Army Judge Advocate to launch an investigation in coordination with the PNP.
