Ivan Padilla preferred to be cremated — family

Ivan Padilla, the suspected carjack gang leader who was killed in a supposed shootout with policemen last week, was cremated apparently upon his and his grandmother’s request. This was according to Ivan’s family who on Wednesday explained to the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) their decision to have Ivan’s remains cremated last week. “Hindi raw matagalan nung lola na ganoon ang nakikita niya (Ivan’s grandmother simply couldn’t accept what happened to him)," Carmelita Rosete of CHR-National Capital Region told GMANews.TV in an interview. Donaldo Padilla, Ivan’s father, went to the CHR-NCR office in Quezon City on Wednesday to file a formal complaint and execute an affidavit asking the rights body to investigate the supposed human rights violations against Ivan. He was accompanied by his daughter. Donaldo said Ivan, 23, had once told them he'd rather be cremated when he dies. The police claimed Ivan was killed in a shootout in Makati City last August 2, but an autopsy report indicated that he died of asphyxiation, or extreme drop of oxygen in the body. A paraffin test on him yielded negative results. A news footage taken after the supposed shootout showed Ivan slumped at the back of a police mobile patrol vehicle, bleeding but conscious and groggily answering questions from reporters. Rosete said she explained to the Padillas’ the repercussion of having Ivan’s remains cremated, adding that investigators are left to rely on the police’s autopsy report and witness accounts to recreate the shootout. “Puwede naman kasi after na lang ng re-autopsy ang cremation (The cremation could have been done after the re-autopsy). But they still chose to have him [Ivan] cremated," Rosete said. Rosete said she and two other investigators have requested the Philippine National Police-National Capital Region Police Office (PNP-NCRPO) to furnish them copies of the paraffin test results and autopsy report. Rosete said their investigators had already interviewed Ivan’s detained mother, Malou Padilla, and his companion at the time of the supposed shootout, Mark Inducil. Inducil, however, has yet to execute an affidavit, Tony Abbago of the CHR's Protection and Monitoring Division told GMANews.TV. - KBK, GMANews.TV