Cop, 8 others arrested for killing Palawan lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit

Authorities arrested and charged a police officer and eight other suspects for the murder of Palawan lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit last November 17.

The Philippine National Police said Thursday among those charged was Police Senior Master Sergeant Ariel Pareja.

The police officer is now under restrictive custody of the Palawan Police Provincial Office.

Also identified respondents in the complaint filed on Wednesday before the Palawan Provincial Prosecutor’s Office were Jazer del Rosario, Marcelino Quioyo, and six others.

According to Mimaropa PNP Regional Director Brig. Gen. Pascual Muñoz, Pareja, has been moonlighting as a bodyguard for Quioyo. Magcamit was representing the party fighting against Quioyo in a court case of a land dispute.

Muñoz said aside from a criminal case, administrative charges are also being prepared against Pareja based on his indictment in the murder case.

Lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit was shot dead in the southern Palawan town of Narra last week.

According to the initial police report, two unidentified suspects flagged down the lawyer. The suspects then fired at Magcamit upon stepping out of his vehicle,  him instantly.

Magcamit is the 52nd in the legal profession to be killed under the Duterte administration since 2016.

Cop, 8 others arrested for killing Palawan lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines Palawan chapter condemned the killing of lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit, citing the incident as an “attack to the legal order and justice system by means of fear and violence.”

According to his profile on TMG Law Palawan, Eric Jay Magcamit was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2010. He graduated from Palawan State University School of Law in 2009 and graduated from Palawan State University, B.S. Environmental Science in 2005, Cum Laude. He was also President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Awardee and DOST-SEI Awardee.

Lawyer Eric Jay Magcamit’s work experience includes Attorney IV, Provincial Legal Office of the Province of Palawan (2010 to 2013); Legal Researcher, Office of Rep. Abraham Kahlil B. Mitra, House of Representatives (2009 to 2010); Professor in Law, College of Business and Accountancy, Palawan State University (2010 to present).

Among his areas of expertise are Civil and Criminal Litigation, Dispute Resolution, Election Laws, Labor Relations, Immigration, Real Estate Transactions, Succession, and Family Relations.