Neighbors belie cops' claim that man on CCTV wasn't Kian

Witnesses, including barangay officials in Caloocan City, on Monday belied the police's claim that the man shown on a CCTV footage being dragged by what is believed to be plainclothes policemen was not 17-year-old Kian Loyd Delos Santos.

A report by GMA News' Ivan Mayrina on 24 Oras said witnesses claimed seeing Delos Santos being dragged by two policemen past 8 p.m. on August 16.

"Oo, dalawang pulis. Inipit siya," a neighbor said in the report when asked if she actually saw Kian being dragged to the area where his body was later found.

"Siya (Kian) po 'yun. Siya lang naman dito ang nag-ano nun, may nangyari na ganun nung gabi na 'yun," another resident said.

"Siya lang eh, wala naman siyang kasabay na [hinuli] dito sa [Barangay] 160," one barangay tanod said.

The body of Delos Santos was found slumped more or less 100 meters from where he was picked up.

Earlier, Public Attorney's Office chief Persida Acosta said that based on initial autopsy results, Kian sustained two gunshot wounds in the head and a "treacherous wound" in the back.

Police claimed Delos Santos was killed when he tried to shoot them while attempting to escape an anti-drug operation. CCTV footage provided by the barangay, meanwhile, shows otherwise.

The police said the man on the footage was not Delos Santos and insisted that he was killed in a legitimate operation.

Police have also claimed the they were forced to shoot the teenager after a firefight, saying they recovered a .45 pistol and two packets of alleged shabu from Delos Santos.

But residents likewise belied the shootout claim.

"Wala namang lumaban," one resident said.

NBI probe

The National Bureau of Investigation team probing the case found a slug of a bullet as well as its imprint on the wall near the area where Delos Santos was killed.

While the NBI did not give any statements, a source told GMA News' Ivan Mayrina that the mark on the wall indicated that the shooter was standing, and that he had shot downward at a target lower than him.

The three policemen involved in the operation -- Police Officers 1 Jeremias Pereda and Jerwin Cruz and Police Officer 3 Arnel Oares -- have been relieved from their post by the National Capital Region Police Officer (NCRPO).

Their precinct commander, Chief Inspector Amor Cerillo, and Caloocan City police chief Senior Superindent Chito Bersaluna, have likewise been relieved. —KBK/JST, GMA News