BAGUIO CITY — Two former cadets of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) were found guilty of murder while another cadet was found guilty of hazing in relation to the death of cadet 4th class Darwin Dormitorio in 2019.
In a 42-page decision promulgated on Friday, Baguio Regional Trial Court Branch 5 Judge Ligaya Rivera found former cadets 3rd class Shalimar Emperial Jr. and Felix Lumbag Jr. guilty of murder and former cadet 3rd class Julius Tadena also guilty of hazing and meted the penalty of reclusion perpetua or up to 40 years of imprisonment.
A member of PMA class of 2023, Dormitorio died on Sept. 18, 2019 due to blunt traumatic injuries to the abdomen inflicted by the accused.
To recall, two more accused were sentenced by the Municipal Trial Court in Cities Branch 1 on Aug. 4, 2023, for inflicting injuries on Dormitorio.
The court found that former cadets 3rd class Julius Carlo Tadena and Christian Zacarias were guilty for slight physical injuries. Other co-accused former PMA Station Hospital chief Lt. Col. Ceasar Candelaria and medical officers Capt. Flor Apple Apostol and Maj. Maria Ofelia Beloy were absolved from the charge of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide.
The Dormitorio family, in its social media post, welcomed the latest verdict of the court on the primary case, saying "justice has been served for Darwin."
It was on Sept. 17, 2019 when Dormitorio started his ordeal when he was summoned by then cadet 1st class Axl Rey Sanupao to his room over a pair of combat boots that was entrusted to the victim a week earlier.
When Dormitorio failed to produce the missing boots, he was endorsed to Lumbag and Emperial, who reportedly maltreated the victim.
Court records show that Dormitorio was also subjected to another wave of maltreatment from the suspects that caused him to slump on the floor unconscious.
When Dormitorio was taken to the PMA Hospital, he was diagnosed to be suffering from urinary tract infection. He was released back to his quarter but was again subjected to maltreatment by his upperclassmen.
On the wee hours of Sept. 18, 2019, Dormitorio vomited and complained of a stomach ache. He also did not respond to the morning call for cadets as he was found unconscious in his bed and was immediately taken to the hospital.
He was declared dead in the morning of the same date.
The Dormitorio family's legal counsel, lawyer Jose Adrian Bonifacio said, "all the hard work and sacrifices after 5 years were all worth it."
"We dedicate the [victory] to Darwin and his father, retired Col. William Dormitorio, who has died before the release of the decision," he added.
"I pray that Darwin and his father will finally have peace."
Emperial and Lumbag shall also indemnify the heirs of Dormitorio P75,000, another P75,000 as moral damages and P25,000 as temporal damages. They are also asked to pay P100,000 for attorney's fee.Tadena was also asked to pay P2 million as indemnity.