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By Katrice R. Jalbuena, Reporter
Despite the appeals for clemency
of the hostaged-children’s parents on behalf of Armand “Jun”
Ducat and Caezar Carbonell, the prosecutor’s office of the City of
Manila on Monday filed a resolution in court recommending Ducat and
Carbonell be indicted and prosecuted for 27 counts of serious
illegal detention, 2 counts of slight illegal detention and
violations of the Omnibus Election Code yesterday.
The dismissed charges of illegal
possession of firearms, submitted in the information by the police,
for lack of evidence.
A special panel of three city
prosecutors—Attys. Danilo V. Suarez, Nestle Go and Lourdes
Antonetta Danta—ruled that despite the fact that all parents of
the 26 children who were held hostage by Ducat and Carbonell in a
shuttle bus on March 28 gave their consent for Ducat to take custody
of their minor children—that does not did free Ducat and Carbonell
from their culpability because the parents’ was limited only to
the scheduled field trip to Tagaytay.
Hence, the prosecutors argued,
minute that Ducat and Carbonell seized control of the bus from the
driver (whom Ducat asked to leave the bus) and deviated from the
itinerary, the parent’s consent to give Ducat authority over and
custody of the children ended.
Though Ducat and Carbonell
claimed that the children and the teachers were held without
restraint the fact remained that they were armed and that they
themselves claimed the incident was a hostage-taking. That made it
necessary for the police and other parties to negotiate for the
release of the children and the teachers.
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