A history blog by a business administration graduate, set to talk about news, current events, historical records, fake news, etc. Just written as a hobby blog since the writer himself is no historian but it doesn't mean he can't be right where some history majors are wrong.
Today in History: Paco Larrañaga was in QUEZON CITY When the Crime Happened
Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps
-
Photo credited to Michael Collins and Marty Syjuco
I remember getting the shock of my life when somebody told me, "You still remember Larrañaga? He was innocent!" in Cebuano. I replied with a "Huh?" It seemed too good to be true. After I heard it, I checked out Give Up Tomorrow (read my review here) sometime before the badly made movie Jacqueline Comes Home came out in 2018. I decided to check the movie a few years later out of boredom but it was more boring than the rainy evenings (read my review here). I even had a friend (will not mention his name to protect his privacy) who was with Francisco Juan "Paco" G. Larrañaga on that night. The photo above couldn't be manipulated at all. If one is in doubt, why not have the photos checked for authenticity than just jump to the conclusion?
The Chiong Sisters went missing on July 16, 1997. Paco was later rounded up as one of the suspects in a crime that happened on July 16, 1997. Where was Paco at that time? Paco, while a resident of Cebu, was in Manila during that time. It was said that Paco allegedly attempted to kidnap a certain Rochelle Virtucio. If I'm not wrong, Paco admitted to that crime. Based on the details given, it's a poorly orchestrated kidnapping attempt. Paco was already known to be a bad boy in Cebu, something he also admitted during the Dong Puno interview, as shown in Give Up Tomorrow. However, I heard it was dismissed possibly because Paco, who had a bad reputation, was studying in Quezon City. If so, where are the identities of the other unruly teenagers who were with Paco during that time? None of those included Davidson Rusia and the Uy brothers, James Anthony and James Andrew. Paco and Josman Aznar (who's five years older than Paco) knew each other but not Davidson. Also, Josman's original case was drug possession and illegal possession of firearms.
People may do Ad Hominems on me, and maybe even law students will say, "Are you smarter than the Supreme Court or us lawyers?" Just because I'm not smarter than them or I'm writing using a free domain, doesn't automatically make me wrong! Just because someone is using a paid domain doesn't mean they're automatically right. However, I do sometimes ask the question if they're smarter than the late Lee Kuan Yew or Kishore Mahbubani, whenever they quote from Atty. Hilario G. Davide Jr. Speaking of Atty. Davide, he was also involved in the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Davide's wife was a relative of the Chiong Sisters. Could that relation have caused Paco's appeal to be turned down despite the plea to have a DNA test of the body, which may not even be Marijoy's? Even if the body was Marijoy's--a second test wouldn't hurt to be sure. DNA testing and any other tissue samples may also prove Paco didn't do the crime.
Asian Madness Podcast
Judge Teresita Galanida, one of those who got promoted after the trial, even pointed out that Paco was looking sideways and only his chair was black. A big question that I might've asked and lost my temper in the process would be, "Okay, why don't you have that evidence tested and see if it was really a fake?" I remember Cebu City Vice Mayor Raymond N. Garcia even brought negatives in court. I was wondering why did Vice Mayor Garcia bring negatives? My 13-year-old angry self only wanted justice for the victims. Most people believed Paco was already guilty based on what the late Carlos P. Celdran calls a "trial by publicity". If they wanted to see if it was a camera trick--why not have it examined? However, I guess that for the sake of ratings and popular public opinion, Paco was already declared guilty over something he never did. Sure, Paco did a lot of bad things but it's still unethical to pin him down on something he couldn't have done.
The conflicting accounts between Paco and the teachers
Sure, there were conflicts in Paco's account vs. the teachers. That was the basis when I ran into Atty. Naunsa Ba Ni on Facebook. I don't intend to continue arguing with that fool or I'd stress myself out. At the same time, not being a lawyer means I'm at a disadvantage especially when Ad Hominem is the favorite weapon of people to win a battle.
Jourdan Sebastian publicly posted on Facebook:
Regarding Paco’s and the Teacher’s Conflicting Stories... When Paco gave his written affidavit about July 16, I believe it was months after July 16. He was yanked from his home and brought to a precinct. In shock, in disbelief, harassed and pressured he was demanded to write what he was supposed to be doing on a particular normal day that happened months before. Because it was for a high-profile case he was not released and was only allowed to talk to lawyers and family members. They also had no idea what he was doing on July 16. So he had to rely on his own memory. Mind you he had no access to records or to people who were with him during that time. He couldn’t ask anybody or even check his schedule or notes if he had any. Let me ask you... without checking your smartphone, given his same condition of an accused in jail... would you be able to recall exactly what you were doing just last June 16, 2018... which was a month ago? Given it was an ordinary day? Can you get all your details exactly correct?
When his teacher later on testified in court about July 16... I believe more than a year had passed already. The teacher, who had access to her written schedules and her calendar, the chance to ask students and colleagues and the capacity to check class records... may be more accurate in her recollection. That is understandable.
But if both Paco and his teacher both had precisely identical testimonies... what would that mean? Either both had perfect memory of an ordinary day that happened a long time before... or one of them altered their story to fit the other. No, that didn’t happen.
Can anybody rely on a perfect memory? Even more, Davidson the "star witness" supposedly had "perfect recollection" of the crime that he and the others supposedly committed on July 16. Jourdan also writes this publicly on Facebook:
Now let’s go to the star witness’ testimony... which as Ms. Lagcao stated, perfectly fitted the evidence provided by the police and prosecution. Here are the facts:
1. If my memory serves me right... the star witness had a criminal record and was actually in prison for a different offense when he suddenly became a state witness.
2. He was held by the same authorities who had access to the evidence that was going to be used in court.
3. He perfectly corroborated all the evidences.
4. He was powerfully detailed even if the incidents he was narrating happened more than a year after.
5. He had perfect recollection of what happened even if drugs and alcohol were being used heavily at the time of the crime.
Yet there was a perfect testimony by an imperfect witness... who was granted freedom soon after.
The testimony of this man was allowed... but 40 people who were all upstanding citizens with zero criminal records, armed with pictures and official documents.... were not allowed to testify?
Judging by Paco's recollection from memory vs. Davidson's claims of what happened while was supposedly under the influence of drugs--how can we reconcile it? I don't need to be a neurologist to understand this--drugs and alcohol being used heavily can alter the memory. I tried being drunk one and it wasn't even a huge amount. I can't recall everything I did when I was drunk. How can Davidson even claim to remember everything clearly? Even worse, the Supreme Court of the Philippines, at that time, still sided with Davidson's unbelievable story.
Can Paco do the crime and go back to Manila like nothing happened?
While watching it, Solita Collas-Monsod may not be a person I admire. However, I'm going to give credit where credit is due. Mrs. Monsod's expression in the film was funny. Sure, I don't like Mrs. Monsod's rather stuck-up attitude against reforming the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. However, I'd like to commend her for pointing out the late Judge Martin Ocampo's colorful imagination. How can Paco hire an airplane, go to Cebu to do the dastardly deed, go back to Manila to do the dastardly deed, and take back his exams the next day, with no record whatsoever? I wonder if Atty. Naunsa Ba Ni considered it when she read the Supreme Court decision?
I watched Jacqueline Comes Home and even the controversial exploitation film Animal (2004) as a reference. Hopefully, I'll be able to rewatch the Calvento Files episode that dramatized the testimony of Davidson. What I can remember is that all three depictions (take note that Animal is just a work of fiction, not a dramatization of the real case) portray a long-night assault. Could Paco really fly to Cebu with a private jet, do the dastardly deed from that time at that time, fly to Manila, and take his exams like nothing happened? The judge kept asking for proof but the judge wasn't as honest and incorruptible. In fact, Judge Ocampo was already charged with graft even before he held the case. A judge with low credibility (so much for saying he was honest and incorruptible) would naturally listen to a witness with low credibility! Judge Ocampo was even seen sleeping live on television. Why didn't anybody protest against it? Judge Ocampo had a colorful imagination and low common sense. It's possible to be qualified to be a judge but have low common sense! Judge Ocampo was estranged from his family as well. If I remember clearly, Judge Ocampo checked in with a much younger woman in that same place where he was found dead. Right now, I believe in Dr. Raquel Fortun's conclusion that the judge indeed took his life. Judge Ocampo's body was supposed to be cremated but it had to be studied. I give the benefit of the doubt suicide happened, considering Dr. Fortun herself was also the one who questioned the body that was found in Carcar.
Can Paco seriously still have the energy to take his exam the next day? Also, even if it takes only one hour to move from Cebu to Manila, can Paco have the energy to rape someone? Going back and forth from the airport is no easy hassle. Paco would need to pass through security before he could even meet up with the others. Also, going from Mactan to Ayala would be a long distance. Given the year, could Paco even travel so fast to go to Ayala Center? Going back to the rape scenes in both movies--could Paco even carry out the crimes in like manner and not feel tired after that? Paco was a rather fat man so he'd easily get tired if he did what Davidson said they did. Stopping by Guadalupe to do initial rape and then go to Carcar, Cebu? Wouldn't that take a lot of time? Would Paco be able to enter the class on time and not get anybody suspicious? Paco would be in a huge mess if he did the crime!
Try checking out this video of the safehouse where it happened. The place was also vacant during that time. The place was too small for a group of 10 people to have a sex party. Eight men and two women wouldn't fit. Even the rooms are too small even for four and four to rape each woman in two separate rooms. In the movie Animal (2004)--the main antagonist Jako (played by the late John Regala) and his gang committed the crime in their much bigger hideout. It seems the late Federico "Toto" Natividad Jr. made the movie out of disbelief rather than for profit. If Natividad had been there during the premiere of Give Up Tomorrow--he might've confessed to why he made the film. However, Davidson insisted it happened. Dogan Gurkan, the owner of the boarding house mentioned DNA testing. Would a guilty person insist on DNA testing? This reminds me of Hubert Jeffry Webb's request for DNA testing to prove he wasn't the one who raped the late Carmela Vizconde. However, Atty. Amelita G. Tolentino turned it down. Why is DNA test usually turned down? There's something very fishy about that!
Not everyone will believe that Paco was indeed in Manila when it happened. There will be some people who, like Atty. Naunsa Ba Ni, would believe the Supreme Court all the time, even when the judges would be wrong. The movie Jacqueline Comes Home even had lawyers debating over the case. One law student said, "I believe that the Philippine justice system will never convict an innocent person!" They may have never heard of the late George Stinney Jr.--an African-American teenager who was wrongfully executed for a rape-slay case. However, even if I'm no lawyer, I'm still writing this because the case is making me ask, "What if I could be next to be accused of a crime I never did?"
I've observed several anti-constitutional reform pages on Facebook. Whether it'd be Change Scamming, Silent No More PH, Mahal Ko Ang Pilipinas, La Verite (and Pinocchio ironically represents this page), Rule of Law Sentinel, We Are Millenials, etc.--the argument tends to quote the framers (or the Catholic Bishops' Conference in the Philippines) more than anything. Most of them tend to echo the same idea, echo the same sources, etc. In fact, one foolish old man I met said he wouldn't believe anything about the constitution if it's not from Filipino constitutionalists. In short, I'm dealing with a group of broken records. Why do I say that they're broken records? It's always repeatig the same ideas over and over again. It may not be the same words over and over again. However, one can look at the idiomatic meaning of broken record, as a person who keeps repeating the same ideas or statements, over and over again , without offering anything new. In fact, ...
This is one topic I felt like I wanted to write down here. It's all about the boomer generation with people resistant to change. Boomers are typically born from 1946 to 1964. Having been a millennial (born 1991-1996) meant there were changes that would happen. Some things that are common today were luxuries yesterday. It was during the 1990s to early 2000s. I could remember being stuck with some obsolete technology back in the 2000s. It was a real challenge (actually) since I had to deal with a lot of boomers. A lot of boomers held the seats of authority. They can be parents, uncles, aunties, caretakers, and teachers just to name a few. I remembered wanting to have a personal computer. It was rather a convenient tool actually. I simply wanted to have that PC because it made encoding easier. What would the typical boomers say? Well, they say, "Back in our day, we had a typewriter so stop complaining and use the typewriter just like we did!" Then they get mad when the typew...
In the quest to study Filipino ancestral heritage, one may point to Taiwan's natives. What can't be ignored are the Indonesians and Malaysians. This dance resembles to the dances from the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The dance patterns are similar yet different to the Pangalay in Mindanao. The more I seek to understand Filipino culture's development--I feel that Tealive should invest next in the Bangsamoro regions. The Bangsamoro region might be the next best bet for a Malaysian tea company after all.
IMGUR The philosopher Voltaire (real name François-Marie Aroue ) was said to have said, "Perfect is the enemy of good." To define the Nirvana fallacy, we can look at Logically Fallacious to help us define it: Description: Comparing a realistic solution with an idealized one , and discounting or even dismissing the realistic solution as a result of comparing to a “perfect world” or impossible standard, ignoring the fact that improvements are often good enough reason . Logical Form: X is what we have. Y is the perfect situation. Therefore, X is not good enough. Example #1: What’s the point of making drinking illegal under the age of 21? Kids still manage to get alcohol. Explanation: The goal in setting a minimum age for drinking is to deter underage drinking, not abolish it completely. Suggesting the law is fruitless based on its failure to abolish underage drinking completely, is fallacious. Example #2: What’s the point of living? We’re all going to die anyway. Ex...
Back in my student days, I remembered having been a stranger to Chinese culture. One song was called "高山青 (read as Gāo Shān Qīng)" which literally means "High Green Mountain". The dancers wore the costumes used for traditional Ifugao dances. My interest in this topic came back because of a local tea company called Alishan Tea . Before that, other tea shops offered tea from Mt. Alishan. Chatime also promoted tea from Taiwan which was grown from Mt. Alishan. I'm afraid that the cultural revolution of Mao Zedong could've destroyed them if Chiang Kai Shek didn't split Taiwan from China. Hopefully, Taiwan's desire for independence would be granted if China becomes a democratic country. I remembered being told that a trip to Taiwan's Mt. Alishan might remind one of Baguio or Nueva Ecija. It turns out that the Banaue Rice Terraces, as marvelous as it is, may not be so unique. I love the Banaue Rice Terraces and they should be preserved. Countries with ...
iStock Happy Halloween, right? I would like to write something scary. I've written some blog entries under the label "crime". My two favorite topics are the Vizconde Massacre Case, which was followed by the Chiong Sisters Case. It's amazing that one of the siblings of Marijoy Jimenea Chiong and Jacqueline Jimenea Chiong, was actually my schoolmate at the University of San Carlos. Some people knew this Chiong sibling as Debbie Jane Chiong-Sia, who by the way, isn't Jacqueline . Jacqueline would be in her 50s would she have lived. I didn't care anymore about the case until someone told me, "Do you remember Paco Larrañaga? He was innocent!" It scared me straight. The question was given to me after someone also mentioned Hubert Jeffry P. Webb as innocent regarding the Vizconde Massacre case. I believed that both Paco and Jeffry were guilty. The scary truth was that they were innocent of the crimes. I got interested in digging into the crimes. Back in t...
PhilStar August is often called Buwan ng Wika though I want to call it Month of the Culture instead. Buwan ng Wika is often used to showcase various Filipino dances. With that in mind, I think the cultural month gives me the feeling to explore more of my country's history. I remembered visiting the University of San Carlos' museum when I was nine years old. I studied at USC-Downtown Campus and took my bachelor's degree and master's degree there. The USC museum was a fun memory. However, I think going to a much bigger museum than what USC or Casa Gorordo could offer might be more fun. Here are the guidelines from the Facebook page . Back when I was nine, I remembered we were told not to take photos. I assumed that it was for confidential reasons or because flash photography can deteriorate old artifacts. Here are some rules to follow and what to leave behind in your car. Hopefully, they will have a baggage counter and I'm afraid not bringing an umbrella can be an inc...
Getty Images It's crazy how reporting a comment with the word "Hitler" can get anyone banned. For example, this is what I found on Quora : They should be allowed. there are quotes of his that are not in praise of hitler but showing how he thought so that people are critical of their current leaders . For example, here’s a quote by him “ How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think.” This is a perfect example of why Hitler quotes should be allowed; to show how dictators think and how people should be critical. Yes, he started a giant war and murdered people but censoring what he said will only help the next dictator start more wars and murder more people because people forgot about Hitler . This is why the First Amendment is so important: it’s about communication and freedom so that we all make better decisions in the future. I just told someone that Adolf Hitler seized the means of production and I got a strike. Like what? I wonder what ...
It's indeed the gossip that went on for a long that the regime of the late Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. was a legitimate parliamentary government. I remembered arguing with someone on Facebook who's apparently a political science graduate on that issue. Another one was a 60-year-old former OFW dancer (and his name keeps changing ). It was all about when I asked for empirical evidence to defend their claims. I decided to write this post hoping to at least shut the mouths of those two boomers who still gossip about it. It's more than time for the truth to come out, especially if their source is most likely summarized in three words, "Trust Me Bro!" Examining the way the Marcos parliament was run I could go ahead and keep pointing out that it wasn't. I was referred over to the House of Representatives website which talks about the formation of the Batasang Pambansa which is translated as the National Legislative in English. When martial law was declared, the Consti...
The passing away of John Regala hit today. I remembered a film called Animal (2004) in which the original title was originally Butakal meaning male pig. Regala starred as Jaco Lozano--an obvious caricature of Juan Francisco Gonzales Larrañaga aka Paco. Strangely enough, neither the Larrañagas nor the Osmeñas were heard to have ever filed a case against the late director Toto Natividad. Instead, it was the Chiong family that filed a lawsuit against Natividad. I did write about whether or not Natividad himself was interviewed by the directors of Give Up Tomorrow . As mentioned, there was over 400 hours worth of footage and over 100 interviews done . Both Marty Syjuco and Michael Collins may have interviewed not only Natividad, the late Tony Calvento but also Regala himself since he played the film's main antagonist . In 2018, we had an incident when Niño Muhlach apologized to Paco for the portrayal in The Calvento Files . Apparently, Niño himself wasn't interviewed but was pro...
Comments
Post a Comment