Weeks after the Malolos court ruled in favour of Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, Raymond Manalo, the witness who helped lead to Palparan’s conviction in a 2018 case, filed a plea for reconsideration in his abduction case on Tuesday.
Manalo said that their evidence was adequate to show a conspiracy including Palparan and the two other accused, and sought that the Malolos Regional Trial Court reconsider its ruling.
Palparan was exonerated on October 6 by Malolos RTC Branch 19 because to discrepancies in the accuser’s identification and the elements of the crime alleged.
“This is to humbly submit that the Honourable Court, in concluding that the Prosecution had not met its burden of establishing the accused’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, misunderstood and misapplied the surrounding facts and circumstances of the case,” the motion stated.
Manalo added that they have enough proof to establish Palparan’s and the other accused parties’ identities.
The request stated that “attention should be directed to the fact that Raymond was able to testify on a consistent basis regarding the involvement and cooperation of the accused Dela Cruz brothers in carrying out his abduction.”
The witness further emphasised that the Court of Appeals case of Empeño and Cadapan and another court in Malolos had upheld his testimony.
The motion stated, “They can stand on their own and are so credible in and of themselves, they are far more deserving of weight and probative value, without relying on the weakness of the defense’s evidence.”
