Night of Subic rape 'reenacted', van inspected

The marathon trial of the rape case against four American marines entered its fifth day Friday as prosecutors reenacted how the 22-year-old victim was allegedly carried by one of her supposed abusers to a van on the night of the incident. The prosecution panel presented again Gerald Muyot, a guard at the Neptune Bar in the Subic Bay Freeport, to "direct" the reenactment on how Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith, a principal accused, took "Nicole" (not her real name) out of the nightclub. Smith allegedly carried Nicole on his back to a green Starex van on the evening of Nov. 1, 2005. Smith, along with fellow US marines Staff Sergeant Chad Carpentier and Lance Corporals Keith Silkwood and Dominic Duplantis, have been accused of raping the Filipino woman. The four American servicemen all stand as principal accused in the case. Muyot earlier testified before the Makati regional trial court-Branch 139 that on the night of the alleged crime, he saw the victim dancing with the four accused at the dance floor of the Neptune Bar. Nicole allegedly "seemed very drunk." He also claimed that he saw Smith carrying off a visibly drunk Nicole out of the bar and brought her to a waiting green Starex van at the parking lot. Judge Benjamin Pozon accompanied defense lawyers at the parking lot of the new Makati City Hall to inspect the van, despite objections from Nicole's counsels. "The court merely wants to establish the conditions inside the van," GMA 7's DZBB quoted Pozon as saying. Lawyer Evalyn Ursua, counsel for the alleged victim, contended that the court should not accept the van as evidence because its interior was already cleaned. The Americans' camp pushed for the inspection of the van to bolster their assertions that the crime was not possible in a cramped space. Defense counsel Jose Justiniano brought a tape measure and "inspected" lighting conditions inside the van. Ursua countered that the cramped space was not material because "rape can occur anywhere, even inside a very tight space." After the reenactment, the prosecution was expected to present witnesses Jaime Aguila and Noel Paolo, both of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).-GMANews.TV