Charges filed vs Cheryl Cosim's alleged assailant

Charges were filed on Tuesday before the Quezon City Regional Trial Court against a businessman who allegedly pointed a gun at TV5 news anchor Cheryl Cosim and her companions in a traffic altercation last year. Richard Ordonez of Proj. 6, Quezon City was charged with two counts of illegal possession of firearms based on the recommendation of Assistant City Prosecutor Rodrigo del Rosario. He is also facing charges of other light threats before the Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court. Del Rosario recommended a bail of P80,000 for the illegal firearms possession charges, while light threats charges do not require a bail unless required by the court. Cosim alleged that Ordonez pointed his gun at her in the heat of a traffic row along Congressional Avenue on Nov. 2, 2009 On that day, Cosim was on the way home with her partner John Alvarez and three other companions on board a Mitsubishi Outlander, when Ordonez sideswiped their vehicle, blocked it, alighted, and then pointed a hand gun at them, signaling them to come out of their car. Fearing for their lives, the complainants did not get out of their car until Ordonez boarded his car, then sped away. They immediately reported the incident to the police and were able to identify the respondent through license plates of his car, which they were able to jot down. In his counter-affidavit, Ordonez claimed that he could not be charged since the complainants failed to give the general description of the gun used in the incident. But in his three-page resolution, Del Rosario found probable cause to indict the respondent. “There is no compelling reason for complainants to concoct stories just to charge him (respondent) with any criminal act, hence their testimonies are entitled to full faith and credit," Del Rosario said. During the investigation, it was learned that the respondent owned several firearms with permits that had already expired. The prosecutor also said the respondent should be charged separately for illegal possession of the following high-powered firearms: caliber .40 STI pistol, caliber .40 Glock pistol, caliber .45 Parao pistol, and caliber .45 Tripp pistol. - DM/KBK, GMANews.TV