Criminal raps filed vs Pilar Pilapil's companion

Police on Tuesday filed criminal complaints against the companion of veteran actress Pilar Pilapil when she was abducted in Marikina City and abandoned wounded in neighboring Rizal province. Chief Superintendent Samuel Pagdilao Jr, director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, said Rosel Jacosalem Peñas and her two supposed accomplices were charged with complex crime of kidnapping with frustrated murder before the Antipolo City Prosecutors Office. Pilapil and Peñas were on board a gold Kia Carens when two armed men forcibly took over the vehicle at the Riverbanks area in Marikina City and headed for Rizal province on April 14. "[Pieces of evidence] also showed that Peñas fabricated stories, which led to the conclusion that she had acted in conspiracy with the two suspects if not had masterminded the attacks on Pilapil," Pagdilao said. Pilapil was stabbed several times inside the vehicle and was dumped at a grassy portion of Piedra Blanca Homes subdivision in Antipolo City, while the suspects took Peñas with them. Investigators initially thought Peñas was also a victim of the crime, but later concluded that she was an accomplice after checking her background. Peñas was also seen on board the missing vehicle a day after the attack. Further investigation showed that Peñas committed qualified theft in 2009 based on the information shared to the police by a female tipster. Pagdilao said they will wait for the case's resolution at the level of the prosecutor for the eventual issuance of an arrest warrant. Police Senior Superintendent Joel Napoleon Coronel, head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (CIDU) of the Metro Manila police, said Peñas could have "deceived" Pilapil into joining her on April 14. Pagdilao assured the public that Peñas is still in the country as shown by records from the Bureau of Immigration. A landlady in Manila who owns the condominium where Peñas is allegedly residing told investigators that the suspect has been staying at the place since November 2008. Authorities also denied reports that Peñas was being held hostage by her supposed abductors. The reports came after Peñas' husband, Nelson, supposedly received a text message from his wife claiming her abductors are demanding a P10-million ransom. "The CIDG believes that the text message was part of the ploy, as corroborated in the statement of Nelson and other witnesses," Pagdilao said. The lady guard of the condominium where Peñas is staying claimed seeing Peñas dressed "as if she had gone out of bed" the morning after the attack. This led authorities to conclude that Peñas spent the night at her dormitory and was safe after the assault on Pilapil. "These [pieces of evidence] substantiated the findings of the NCR CIDU that Rosel Peñas was not a victim, but instead a suspect in the crime of kidnapping with frustrated murder against Pilar Pilapil," said Pagdilao. - KBK, GMA News