In the Philippines an Ilonggo businessman was meted...

In the Philippines an Ilonggo businessman was meted the death penalty after he was found guilty of masterminding the kidnap-slaying of Bacolod-based businesswoman Roberta Cokin in 1995.The death verdict on Ronaldo Porquez, 50, drew loud applause from Cokin's relatives during the promulgation by Regional Trial Court Judge Roberto Chiongson.Teresita Cokin, the victim's sister, was in tears when she told the Inquirer that their family's desire for justice was finally attained.Porquez hugged his wife, Fe, who also wept after hearing the ruling. The businessman called Chiongson's ruling unfair, saying the judge had already decided on the case even before his trial started.The ruling is subject to automatic review by the Supreme Court.Cokin, 70, was kidnapped in Bacolod on July 15, 1995. The kidnappers demanded P2 million in ransom. But law enforcers foiled the pay off in Bacolod and arrested bagman John Mamarion, a former rebel. Cokin's decomposing body was found on Aug. 7, 1995, in a shallow grave in Barangay Palaypay, Anilao town, Iloilo. Autopsy reports showed that Cokin was tortured before she was killed. She was handcuffed when found. Her body also bore several stab wounds.Aside from Mamarion, three other suspects were later arrested. They were Maj. Rolando Maclang and his alleged mistress Juliet Harisco and Airman Second Class Charlito Domingo.On Oct 7, 1998 Chiongson found the four guilty of kidnap-for-ransom and sentenced them to death.Porquez was not sentenced along with them because he was arrested only on March 30, 1999 in a safe house in Jaro District, Iloilo.