Fortun: Jemboy had defense type injury on the hand

Forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun said autopsy results revealed 17-year-old Jemboy Baltazar also had a gunshot wound on his right hand - a defense-type injury.

The autopsy found that Jemboy was hit twice, on the head with an entry wound behind the ear and an exit wound on the nose, while the other shot hit him on the right hand.

“‘Yung kamay, because of the location, this is what we call a defense-type injury. And I heard accounts that he held his hands up in surrender, and that is a defensive stance,” Fortun said in a 24 Oras Weekend report by Jonathan Andal on Saturday.

According to his death certificate, Jemboy’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, as well as asphyxia from drowning.

But Fortun said had Jemboy not fallen on the river following the shooting incident, he could have been rescued.

Fortun will re-examine Jemboy’s brain and conduct a histopathology examination on it.

“In the news accounts may nakikita na akong conflicting verson... kesyo tumalon daw siya sa tubig, nahulog daw siya sa tubig, at pinagbababaril sa tubig. Teka muna, parang asintado ito. Sa ulo talaga, sa kamay talaga. Totoo ba yan?" she said.

“Kasi kung blindly nagpaputok ka sa isang tao sa tubig... the chest naturally is a bigger target, wala kaming nakitang bala naiwan doon sa body. Lusutan talaga, through and through yung dalawang tama niya," Fortun added.

She hoped that the police would stage a shooting reconstruction to further shed light on how Jemboy was shot and killed.

Navotas Police Chief Police Colonel Allan Umipig said investigators did not find any shell casing at the crime scene.

The involved policemen also allegedly attempted to conceal their failed operation from him, as it took three hours before they reported the incident.

Twenty-seven personnel of the Navotas City Police Substation 4 were relieved from their post, including those who shot at Jemboy, and would undergo retraining.

Jemboy’s mother Rodaliza Baltazar will face the six cops involved in his son’s death at the prosecutor's office.

She expressed concern for her family’s security, as other policemen were also present in the operation that killed Jemboy, according to witnesses.

Jemboy is set to be buried at the La Loma Cemetery on Wednesday, August 16. — Jamil Santos/DVM, GMA Integrated News