More than a month after the fatal shooting that led to the death of former Army Cpl. Winston Ragos, the National Bureau of Investigations (NBI) today, June 4, filed charges against a police officer and four of his trainees for murder, perjury and planting of evidence.
Police Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo Jr. of Fairview police station shot Ragos twice on Apr. 21 at a COVID-19 checkpoint after a heated argument. Florendo, in the presence of witnesses, open fired at the 34-year old Marawi veteran after the former allegedly tried to pull out a gun.
NBI Spokesperson Ferdinand Lavin said that the case was filed by the NBI’s Death Investigation Division (NBI-DID) before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.
Ragos, who was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, was shot for allegedly violating quarantine rules. Despite witnesses’ accounts saying Ragos was unarmed, police said a caliber .38 gun was found inside his bag.
Header photo courtesy of Grig Montegrande/Inquirer
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