Three men implicated in one of the most violent political killings in recent Philippine history have been found guilty of unlawful possession of firearms and explosives in connection with the March 4, 2023 Pamplona massacre that claimed the life of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo. Negros Oriental Third District Representative Janice Vallega Degamo announced the convictions on Wednesday, September 3, 2026, marking what legal observers describe as the first concrete judicial reckoning in the high-profile case.
Rep. Degamo — the widow of the slain governor — disclosed the rulings through a statement posted on her official Facebook page. She named the three convicted individuals as Joric Garrido Labrador, Joven Calibjo Javier, and Benjie Rodriguez.
What the Convictions Cover
It is important to note that these convictions pertain solely to illegal firearms and explosives charges — not to the multiple murder, frustrated murder, and attempted murder cases that arose directly from the attack. Those graver charges remain active and are currently being tried in Manila courts, according to Rep. Degamo’s statement.
Court records show that the charges for illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, and explosives were filed in March 2023 before the Regional Trial Court in Bayawan City. The charges stemmed from a substantial weapons cache discovered in Barangay Cansumalig, Bayawan City — approximately 500 meters from the location where gunmen had abandoned three getaway vehicles following the attack. Among the items recovered were assault rifles, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, handguns, ammunition, and body armor.
Labrador was charged under Section 28 of Republic Act No. 10591, the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act, while Rodriguez faced charges under Republic Act No. 9516, which governs unlawful possession of explosives. Rep. Degamo’s statement did not identify which specific court issued the conviction ruling, and copies of the decision were not immediately available to the public.
Court of Appeals Had Earlier Cleared the Path
The road to these convictions had a significant legal hurdle to clear. In February 2025, the Court of Appeals denied a petition by Labrador and Rodriguez seeking to quash the criminal informations filed against them and to suppress the evidence gathered by investigators. That appellate ruling affirmed earlier decisions by a Manila trial court and effectively removed the last major procedural obstacle standing between the accused and a verdict on the merits of the case.
The Day Governor Degamo Was Killed
The attack that set these cases in motion unfolded at approximately 9:36 a.m. on March 4, 2023, at Governor Degamo’s residential compound in Pamplona, Negros Oriental. The governor was in the midst of distributing aid to beneficiaries of the government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program when gunmen clad in military-style uniforms and body armor stormed the compound and opened fire. Security camera footage captured the assault in detail.
Governor Degamo was struck by 11 gunshot wounds and died from his injuries. He was not the only casualty — nine other individuals were also killed, including one victim who succumbed to injuries more than two months after the attack. More than a dozen other people were wounded in the assault.
According to investigators, Labrador, Javier, Rodriguez, and a fourth suspect — identified as Osmundo Rojas Rivero — were arrested within hours of the shooting. All four were identified as former soldiers. A fifth suspect was killed during a separate firefight in Bayawan City.
Alleged Mastermind Remains in Custody
The individual accused of orchestrating the assassination — expelled Negros Oriental congressman Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. — remains in detention and has not been convicted in connection with the massacre. Teves was arrested in Timor-Leste in March 2024 and subsequently deported to the Philippines in May 2025, according to previously published reports.
His legal battles have taken several turns. A Manila court acquitted Teves in January 2026 in a separate 2019 murder case involving former provincial board member Miguel Lopez Dungog. The Degamo family publicly clarified at that time that the acquittal had no bearing on the Pamplona massacre cases. Then in April 2026, a Manila court granted Teves bail in yet another separate 2019 killing — but he remained in custody because of the charges directly tied to the Degamo assassination.
Rep. Degamo Speaks on the Verdicts
In her public statement, Rep. Degamo described the weight of seeing the convictions handed down, acknowledging that no court ruling could reverse the suffering endured by the victims’ families.
“Today, my heart carries both pain and hope,” Degamo said in her statement. “Every conviction is a step forward. Every person held accountable brings us closer to the truth and to the justice that Roel and every victim of the Pamplona Massacre deserve.”
The congresswoman expressed gratitude to the courts, prosecutors, and law enforcement personnel who worked on the cases. She also affirmed that the families of victims would continue to pursue full accountability for all those responsible for the massacre.
Her statement underscored that the convictions — while representing meaningful progress — are only a partial chapter in the broader pursuit of justice. The murder cases still pending in Manila remain the central legal battleground, and their resolution will ultimately determine the scope of accountability for the March 4, 2023 attack.
By the Numbers
- 10 — Total deaths resulting from the March 4, 2023 Pamplona attack, including Governor Degamo
- 11 — Number of gunshot wounds sustained by Governor Degamo
- 3 — Suspects convicted on firearms and explosives charges
- 4 — Suspects arrested within hours of the attack
- 500 meters — Distance between the abandoned getaway vehicles and the weapons cache recovered in Barangay Cansumalig, Bayawan City
- February 2025 — Month the Court of Appeals denied the bid by Labrador and Rodriguez to quash charges and suppress evidence
Why This Matters
These convictions represent the first judicial verdicts handed down against any suspect in the Pamplona massacre, establishing a legal record of criminal accountability in a case that shook the nation and left 10 people dead. The firearms and explosives rulings — including reclusion perpetua sentences for two of the three convicted men — demonstrate that the prosecution’s evidence has withstood court scrutiny, even as the more serious murder charges continue their slower course through the Manila courts. Until those pending cases are resolved, and until the role of alleged mastermind Teves is adjudicated, the full measure of justice for the victims and their families remains incomplete.
Source: Originally reported by breakingnewsnegrosoriental.com
