Del Castillo slay suspect surfaces

‘IT WASN’T ME’ Michael Mediana shows the boat and plane tickets to prove that he was in Bukidnon province in Mindanao when fire marshal Casiano del Castillo was shot to death August 22. (Photo by Tara Yap)

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

ONE of the suspects in the assassination of fire marshal Casiano del Castillo surfaced yesterday to clear himself of the murder charges filed by the police with the Iloilo City Prosecutor’s Office.

Michael Mediana of Brgy. Mandog, Maasin, Iloilo flew from Bukidnon to Iloilo after learning last August 28 that he was being tagged in the del Castillo slay case.

Accompanied by Maasin Mayor Mariano Malones Jr., Mediana faced the media at the office of board member Mariano Malones Sr. to clear his name of the accusations.

Mediana said he went to Bukidnon August 8 onboard Negros Navigation passenger ship St. Joseph the Worker.

“I stayed in the town of Maramag to look for work. I was not here when del Castillo was killed,” Mediana said.

Del Castillo was shot to death around 5pm of August 22 while walking home at Land Heights Subdivision in Arevalo, Iloilo City.

Mediana, who used to work as account supervisor of Lifebank in Dueñas town, said he was forced to leave Iloilo after he was involved in the alleged “holdup me” incident in Dingle, Iloilo last month.

“I went to Bukidnon out of shame for what happened. My cousin only set me up which made the police think that it was a case of ‘holdup me’. If I was part of the plan, why would I use my own number? The management of Lifebank did not charge me because they knew my side,” Mediana said.

Mediana said a friend informed him August 28 that he was one of the suspects in the del Castillo slay case. This prompted him to fly back to Iloilo onboard an Air Philippines flight from Davao. He also sought the help of Mayor Malones to provide him security from the airport.

“I was not here when the incident happened. Even my supposed photo which the police used as basis for the charges against me does not match my profile. How can I be involved in this case?” Mediana added.

Mediana also expressed his willingness to face the police and the eyewitnesses to prove his innocence.

Mayor Malones vouched for Mediana’s innocence saying the former is an ex-Sangguniang Kabataan chairman in their town.

“He has no crime record in our town and his favorite activity is to dance, not kill people. Maybe he is a victim of mistaken identity,” Malones said.

The Arevalo police last week filed murder charges against Mediana and a John Doe.