Bullying victim files criminal raps vs classmate's dad

What began as a case of bullying involving high school students has blown into a legal battle, with one student filing criminal charges against his classmate's father for allegedly pointing a gun at him inside school premises.    Jamie Garcia, the alleged victim, filed a complaint of attempted murder, slander and slander by deed against  his classmate's father, Allan Bantiles, on Sept. 25, a report on GMA News’ “24 Oras” said.   Lawyer Richard Nethercott, Bantiles’ lawyer, denied that his client had a gun, and that the family is considering filing their own charges against Garcia, 18, for allegedly punching Bantiles’ 16-year-old son.   “Dine-deny namin ‘yan na may dala siyang baril at nanutok siya ng baril. Kaya lang, dahil nga nagsampa sila ng habla kahapon… ‘yung detalye hindi na muna namin idi-discuss ngayon kasi mayroon nang sakdal, hihintayin na lang namin ‘yung pormal na reklamo at sasagutin namin nang pormal,” said Nethercott in an interview on “Talakayan with Igan” in “Unang Balita” on Wednesday, Sept. 26.   The gun-pointing incident supposedly happened last Aug. 30 at the Colegio de San Agustin in Makati City, where Garcia and the younger Bantiles were 4th year high school students.   According to Garcia's lawyer, Alan Tan, his client was being teased by a classmate by touching his private parts.   "Itong ginagawa kasi, hinahawakan kung saan-saan. Sa maseselang bahagi ng katawan. Tapos nagalit si Jamie, pinahinto ‘to, ayaw pa rin, tinuloy pa rin kaya nagawa niya, nasaktan niya ‘to ngayong bata na ito, sinaksak ng ballpen," Tan said.   Bantiles, who was sitting nearby, reportedly tried to intervene. “Kasi ang upuan ‘ata magkakatabi and their class was already starting, inawat niya, and then itong si Jamie siguro nga mainit ang ulo, galit, whatever. Sinapak niya itong si nakababatang Bantiles, sinapak niya sa panga. Nasaktan, tapos naawat, pinadala sila sa clinic,” Nethercott said on “Unang Balita.”   "I told Jamie to calm down and then when I was not looking I received a blow to the jaw. He punched me hard," the younger Bantiles said in the “24 Oras” report.   Garcia admitted punching Bantiles. "In my anger I hit him and I told him na stop it, he was holding his jaw and he told me na 'Damn, I'll kill you. I'll shoot you," he said.   Around half an hour later, Bantiles’ father arrived at the faculty room where Garcia was waiting for a guidance counselor. According to Garcia, the elder Bantiles pointed a gun at him and threatened to shoot him.   "I still apologized to him kasi I wanted to show na I'm a reasonable person. He brings out the gun this close to my face and he tells me na 'You know, I can shoot you right now. Do you want me to shoot you?'" Garcia said in the “24 Oras” report.   "Gaano kalapit, sabi sa akin ni Jamie, it's five to six inches away. Tapos ang nangyari naman si Mr. Ignacio isang teacher na nandoon sa faculty, siya ‘yung umawat kaya hindi natuloy kung ano man," Tan said on “Unang Balita.”   Nethercott denied that Bantiles pointed a gun at Garcia. "Hindi niya ginawa ‘yun. Maaaring napagsabihan niya ‘yung bata, which is normal. Galit eh. Sinapak niya ‘yung anak, and ‘eto ang reaction ng isang siguro maski sinong ama na concerned sa anak, kaya nga ang mga Garcia, galit din," he said.   Tan, on the other hand, said they have witnesses. "In fact, mayroon kaming incident report ng security na mayroong isang teacher na nag-report sa security tungkol sa panunutok," he said.   Tan also noted that Bantiles had two guns licensed to him. "He should not be handling guns kung hindi siya marunong gumamit n’un," he said on “24 Oras.”   Garcia said he was traumatized by the incident. "I still have nightmares about it. I ponder na, would I really have died that day?" he said in the “24 Oras” report.   Nethercott said Bantiles was alarmed, as any parent would be. “Ang tawag kasi ng anak, may sinaksak sa eskuwelahan, my classmate was stabbed and I was punched. So ang dating niyan sa magulang, maski sinong magulang, alarming. So hindi naman namin dine-deny na si Allan Bantiles nagpunta ng eskuwelahan, pero nanutok ba siya ng baril? No,” he said.   According to Nethercott, they may file charges against Garcia. "Garcia, for one, is hindi na siya menor [de edad], 18 years old ‘yan na kaklase nila at siya ‘yung nanakit sa isang menor de edad," he said.    He also questioned why Garcia only filed charges weeks after the incident.   Tan, meanwhile, accused th school of "not cooperating with the parents." "Nag-report kami sa police at sa barangay [noong] Sept. 4, four days after the incident. Pagkatapos n’un wala nang nangyayari so we had to move. Kasi walang gumagalaw,” he said.   The “24 Oras” report said the school has taken measures to ensure the safety of their students.    Nethercott said the Bantiles family is open to settlement. "The settlement can be in many forms, the settlement can be by way of apology, by way of just letting things cool down and shake hands and be friends again," he said on “24 Oras.”   The Garcia family, however, is bent on pursuing the case. Garcia's mother, Toni, said, "We know how to forgive, but as I've said, he has to take the consequences of... the message that we want to send is no bullying whether big or small is allowed." — KBK, GMA News