Arrest ordered on 3 PMA Cadets, 3 officers in Dormitorio death

WARRANTS of arrest were issued in Baguio City against three cadets of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) who were linked to the death of Cadet 4th Class Darwin Dormitorio, police said on Wednesday.

PCol. Allen Rae Co, Baguio City police chief, confirmed to The Manila Times that it was coordinating with court authorities for the arrest of Cadets’ Shalimar Imperial Jr., Felix Lumbag Jr., and Julius Carlo Tadena.

Based on the documents given by Co to the Times, the court did not recommend bail for the three cadets.

The Baguio Prosecutor’s Office recommended murder and hazing charges against Imperial and Lumbag and hazing and less physical injuries against Tadena.

Arrest orders were also issued against Lt. Col. Caesar Candelaria, former head of the PMA Station Hospital; and medical officers, Maj. Maria Ofelia Beloy and Capt. Flor Apple Apostol.

The court recommended P200,000 bail each for Candelaria and the two medical officers.

The three officers were charged with murder.

The city’s Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the cases against Lt. Gen. Ronnie Evangelista, former PMA Superintendent, and Brig. Gen. Bartolome Vicente Bacarro who resigned from their posts following the hazing incident in 2019.

Dormitorio died on September 18 after suffering multiple injuries in his body due to maltreatment from his fellow cadets that started on August 19, police said.