10 get life for abduction of Filipino-Chinese trader

A Quezon City court on Tuesday sentenced to life imprisonment 10 people for the abduction of a Filipino-Chinese businessman in April 2002. QC regional trial court Branch 219 presiding Judge Bayani Vargas found spouses Monico and Betty Salvador, Marcelo Llanora Jr, Robert Gonzales, Ricky Peña, Roger Pesado, Jose Delantar, Lowhen Almonte, Morey Dadaan, and Jubert Banatao guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of kidnapping for ransom. However, the accused were acquitted on the charges of kidnapping and serious illegal detention also filed against them because of the failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt. In a 75-page decision, the court also ordered all the accused to pay victim Albert Lee Yam, 44, operator of the New Cainta Cockpit Arena, the sum of P100,000. Records showed that the accused abducted Yam on the night of April 7, 2002, a few minutes after he stepped out of his cockpit. Yam told the court the accused brought him to the house of the Salvadors in Caloocan City, together with another alleged victim Pinky Gonzales, where they were detained for six days. While in detention, Yam said the accused demanded $1 million in exchange for his release. But no pay-off took place since operatives of the Philippine National Police rescued Yam and Gonzales. Police arrested all the accused on April 12, 2002 or five days after seizing Yam. The accused denied any participation in the abduction, saying they were in other places when the incident happened. But in his decision, Vargas ruled that the accused only offered denial and alibi. "Denial is a self-serving negative defense that cannot be given greater weight than the declaration of a credible witness. Settled is the rule that the defense of alibi is inherently weak and crumbles in the light of positive declarations of truthful witnesses who testified on affirmative matters," the judge said. - GMANews.TV