Yaps to file attempted murder raps vs Ryan

The family of 14-year-old Anjelo Elton Yap is set to file attempted murder, illegal possession of firearms and child abuse charges against two sons of Sen. Robert Jaworski and their 12 companions for the shooting incident at the parking lot of a restaurant in Mandaluyong City last Monday.

Yap’s counsel, lawyer Byron San Pedro, said they will file the charges before the Mandaluyong City prosecutor’s office on Monday morning because doctors of his client pleaded that he be given enough time to recover from the trauma he suffered from the 10-minute gunfight.

"The victim’s doctor asked for more time so we decided to file the attempted murder charges on Monday," San Pedro told The STAR.

San Pedro said the Yaps will definitely file attempted murder charges, but are deliberating whether to include illegal possession of firearms and child abuse charges against Ryan Jaworski.

Elton is a second year high school student of the Xavier High School in San Juan.

Aside from Ryan, others to be charged are his brother Ron; Mark Causek; Alexander Lopez, and 10 John Does.

San Pedro said their witnesses on hand rose to eight yesterday.

"We got hold of another witnesses who saw Ryan’s brother Ron scampering for safety inside the Kamayan restaurant," San Pedro said.

The camps of Yap and Jaworski accused each other of starting the gunfight which left the latter wounded in both legs and six cars badly damaged.

Jaworski is currently being treated at the Cardinal Santos Hospital in San Juan.

San Pedro claimed Elton and his elder brother, Mark Anthony, were unarmed at the time of the incident.

The lawyer admitted that businessman Antonio Yap owns a shotgun and a handgun while Mark has a licensed handgun.

He asked the Mandaluyong City police to collect the three firearms and subject them to a ballistic tests to match the records at the Firearms and Explosive Division (FED) in Camp Crame.

Ryan’s counsel lawyer, Ruben Platon, said his client was unarmed during the confrontation with Yaps. The Jaworski camp is now collating their evidence to file counter-charges against the Yaps.

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendents Nicanor Bartolome and Benjamin Landrito, both assigned at Camp Crame, submitted yesterday their affidavits to Superintendent Ericson Velasquez, Mandaluyong City police chief.

Bartolome and Landrito admitted owning two of the six vehicles that were hit by bullets during the alleged shootout.

"The two police officials claimed they were having dinner with their drivers when the gunfire erupted. They rushed out of the restaurant after the sound of gunfire subsided," said Velasquez, quoting the affidavit of Bartolome and Landrito.

The elder Yap earlier claimed that a number of police officials were having dinner at the restaurant Monday and that their security aides and drivers fired at Jaworski’s group fire after the vehicles were hit.

Sen. Jaworski maintained that the Yap‘s bodyguards from the Mandaluyong City police shot Ryan.

Velasquez said they are collating all evidence on hand, including the affidavits of Bartolome and Landrito, before filing charges against Yap and Jaworski next week.

"We are waiting for the findings of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) before making our next move," said Velasquez, admitting the status of the case remains pending.

Earlier, SOCO operatives retrieved at the crime scene 81 empty shells, 21 of them are from the M16 rifle.

The elder Yap admitted that Elton and Causek knew each other.

He said he suspects that it was Causek, a neighbor of the Jaworski in Corinthian Gardens, Quezon City, who gave Elton’s cell phone number to Ryan.

Yap said Jaworski kept pestering his son to pay the P4,000 he allegedly owed in a bet during the National Basketball Association Finals.

"Hindi utang ng anak ko ‘yon pero siya ang sinisingil. Siyempre ayaw niyang magbayad," said the elder Yap, pointing out that his two sons went to the area designated by Ryan to settle their matter amicably.