Kian Loyd delos Santos Kian Loyd Dogillo delos Santos (May 26, 2000 – August 16, 2017) was 17 years old at the time of his death and was a resident of
Barangay 160, Caloocan. Delos Santos was the third of four siblings. His mother, Lorenza, worked as a domestic helper in
Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia, while his father, Saldy, operated a
sari-sari store that Kian minded from 5:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon every day before he went to school. Delos Santos was also in favor of the government's war on drugs, according to another classmate. On August 26, 2017, a
Catholic funeral Mass for Delos Santos was held at 8 a.m.
PST, at a parish in Santa Quiteria, Caloocan; it was attended by his family and friends, and hundreds of other people, including human rights advocates. At around 2 p.m., Delos Santos was interred at
La Loma Cemetery.
Incident At around 8:00 p.m.
PST on August 16, 2017, officers of the
Philippine National Police (PNP) led by
PO3 Arnel Oares, were conducting a "one-time, big-time" anti-illegal drugs operation in Barangay 160, Caloocan where Delos Santos lived. At 8:57 p.m., C/Insp. Amor Cerillo and another police officer, both in plainclothes, arrived at the
hall of Barangay 160 to report a supposed shootout. In a muddy and dark alley near his house, which was the site of the alleged encounter, Delos Santos was found in fetal position with gunshot wounds to his head. Recovered from his corpse were a
.45-caliber pistol, four
cartridges, and two sachets of suspected
methamphetamine. According to Cerillo and Bersaluna, a drug dealer that they earlier arrested claimed that Delos Santos was the
mule of "Neneng" Escopino, a local drug dealer on the police watch list.
Witness accounts and CCTV footage Witnesses claim that Delos Santos was just loitering near his house at around 8:00 p.m., when two unidentified men grabbed him and led him away. A 13-year-old witness interviewed by
The Manila Bulletin claimed that she saw Delos Santos being punched and slapped by four armed plainclothes officers before he was dragged away. Delos Santos's uncle, Randy, questioned the police claim that the victim had a concealed firearm, since his nephew was wearing
boxers at that time. A rally titled
Himagsikan para kay Kian () took place on August 21 (
Ninoy Aquino Day) at the
People Power Monument in
Quezon City. Among the groups present were
Akbayan, Alliance of Progressive Labor,
Alyansa Tigil Mina, Sentro,
Partido ng Manggagawa, Kalipunan ng Kilusang Masa, Block
Marcos, Silent Minorities, and Kalipun. Senator
Bam Aquino, former
Bayan Muna Representative
Teddy Casiño, and former Education Secretary
Armin Luistro were also present. A moment of silence was held at 8:24 p.m., the same time Delos Santos was allegedly filmed being dragged by police officers on August 16. The protesters—numbering from 500 to 1,000—also called for the investigation of other drug war killings. Earlier that same day, the
Liberal Party Youth, with the support of other groups, also held a rally at
Plaza Miranda in
Manila, denouncing Delos Santos's killing. The rally also commemorated the 1971
Plaza Miranda bombing and the 1983
assassination of former Senator Ninoy Aquino.
Public figures During a press briefing on August 18,
Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella called the shooting of Delos Santos an "isolated" incident, and added "[President Duterte] will defend the police in their carrying out of duties. However, he will also not tolerate any abuse and any breaches of the law." On August 19, in an interview with
Radyo Pilipinas, Assistant to the Presidential Spokesperson
China Jocson stated: "Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella would like to make it clear that the violent death of any Filipino is one death too many, especially that of Kian Loyd delos Santos. This deeply regrettable incident has triggered deep public sentiment, and challenges those in law enforcement to be wary of the reckless exercise of power and authority." Also on the same day, the
Department of Education released a statement saying it "strongly condemns" the killing of grade 11 student Kian Delos Santos and that while it acknowledged "efforts to battle illegal drugs," it maintained that "upholding the rule of law should not be compromised." The agency also said that it "denounces all forms of violence against our students, teachers, and personnel." Also on August 19, during an emergency peace and order council meeting,
Caloocan Mayor Oscar Malapitan said "It seems hard to believe that a 17-year-old would shoot it out with three police officers" and added: "even if Kian were indeed a drug pusher, he shouldn't have been killed unless the cops were only defending themselves. The public perception is that the cops killed Kian when he was obviously helpless." Senator
Risa Hontiveros was among the first public figures to condemn the murder of Kian delos Santos. She was one of the main initiators of a Senate investigation against the police personnel that killed Delos Santos. She also took legal custody of the witnesses of the case, with proper written consent from the minor and their parents, after fears of police retaliation against the witness surfaced. During the Senate investigation, Hontiveros caught Duterte's justice secretary,
Vitaliano Aguirre II, drafting fabricated charges against her through text messages during the hearings. Aguirre's text messages instructed former Negros Oriental representative Jacinto Paras, a member of controversial group VACC, to "expedite" cases against Hontiveros, the lead investigator against the murderers of Kian delos Santos. The revelation triggered nationwide protests against Duterte's justice secretary for focusing on how to imprison Hontiveros instead of focusing on the murder case. On August 16, 2018, a year after the murder, Hontiveros filed a resolution seeking to declare every 16 August as a "National Day of Remembrance" for all the victims of extrajudicial killings (EJKs) under the Duterte government's
war on drugs in commemoration of Kian delos Santos. Arrested senator
Leila de Lima, a key figure against the
Philippine drug war, also condemned the murder of Kian delos Santos. She asked the Supreme Court of the Philippines to allow her to be present at the Senate investigation against the murderers of Kian, however, the court rejected her request. She criticized President Duterte after Duterte commented that the drug sweep was "good." He recommended that the police officers involved should all be legally prosecuted. Senator
Joel Villanueva called it the "breakdown of our humanity, with people cheering the killings of individuals who have not been proven guilty" and added that "we cannot allow lawlessness in this country." In a statement, Senator
Francis Escudero described the police officers involved as "killers and criminals." While Senator
Sonny Angara called for the reform of the justice system and decried vigilante justice and killings. In a statement,
National Youth Commission chairperson
Aiza Seguerra said: "We want to curb the drug menace; however, we are alarmed by the deaths and injury of minors in the process." Senators
Antonio Trillanes,
Win Gatchalian, and
Loren Legarda also condemned the shooting of Delos Santos. Meanwhile, Senator
Panfilo Lacson, a former police
director general, insinuated that the PNP would cover up the incident. On August 20,
Vice President Leni Robredo visited the
wake of Delos Santos and inspected the site of the shooting. On her weekly radio show on
DZXL, Robredo condemned the shooting, saying: "
kung nangyari sa kanya, puwedeng mangyari sa mga anak natin (if it happened to him, it could also happen to our children)" and later added "
[I]lan na ba iyong Kian na dumaan? Ilan pa ba iyong Kian na mangyayari? Kaya tayo naman, kapag ganito, tingin ko obligasyon natin ipahayag iyong ating pagkamuhi sa ganitong klaseng pangyayari (How many Kians have we had? How many more Kians will follow? That's why when this happens, I think it is our obligation to express our condemnation)." During the visit, Robredo was accompanied by human rights lawyer
Jose Manuel Diokno of the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG), who offered his legal services to the Delos Santos family. Other politicians who visited the wake include Senators Bam Aquino, Risa Hontiveros, and Antonio Trillanes,
Kabataan Partylist representative
Sarah Elago, Caloocan Mayor
Oscar Malapitan, and former Vice President
Jejomar Binay. Representatives from
Amnesty International, the
Commission on Human Rights, and
Iglesia ni Cristo also visited Delos Santos's wake. Father Antonio Moreno, head of the
Society of Jesus in the Philippines, called Delos Santos's death a "heartless killing." Fellow Jesuit Father
Jose Ramon Villarin, president of
Ateneo de Manila University, also condemned the killing of Delos Santos.
Lasallian Brother Armin Luistro, former
Secretary of Education, called for "a minute of silence every night at 8:24 p.m. to remember Kian Loyd delos Santos and all innocent victims of merciless deaths in our land."
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, who is also the president of the
Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), ordered the churches in his archdiocese to ring their bells from 8:00 to 8:15 p.m. every night from August 22 to November 27 in honor of Delos Santos, and as "a call to stop approval of the killings." PNP Director General
Ronald dela Rosa expressed regret over Delos Santos's death, saying he was "very sorry for what happened" but added that he would rather see his police officers alive than dead. Dela Rosa also promised an investigation on the killing, saying: "''Basta pag merong pang-aabuso hindi ko palalampasin 'yan.''" ("If there was indeed abuse [of authority] I will not let it pass.") Despite the incident, he guaranteed that the campaign against illegal drugs would continue. He also refused to visit Delos Santos's wake, believing it was inappropriate for him to do so, since the main suspects were police officers. He also claimed that visiting the wake would make him pretentious like the politicians. He later visited the wake of Delos Santos.
Kian Bill In November 2024,
Akbayan's
Perci Cendaña authored House Bill No. 11044, the “Kian Bill,” which aims to ban “tokhang”, drug lists and torture among others in the
Philippine drug war.
Investigation The three police officers, who were tagged in the shooting of Delos Santos, were relieved from their posts. An autopsy was conducted on August 20, showed that Delos Santos sustained three gunshot wounds: the first entry point was at the back of the head, the second entry point was behind the left ear and the third entry point was inside the left ear. The family of Delos Santos, on August 25, filed murder and torture charges against police officers involved in the drug operation.
Convictions and later events Three Caloocan police officers, Arnel Oares, Jeremiah Pereda, and Jerwin Cruz were found guilty of murdering Delos Santos during a drug sting in 2017. Caloocan Regional Trial Court Branch 125 Judge Rodolfo Azucena on November 29, 2018, sentenced the three to reclusion perpetua, or up to 40 years in prison, without the possibility of parole. On June 4, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the return to active duty of Roberto Fajardo after Fajardo was appointed chief PNP-Highway Patrol Group, nearly a year after he was relieved from duty for the murder of Delos Santos. On August 15, 2022, the remains of Kian delos Santos were exhumed in
La Loma Cemetery in
Caloocan. Their bodies would be reexamined by forensic expert Dr.
Raquel Fortun as part of the investigation on his death; it would be transferred in another gravesite in the same cemetery.
Carl Arnaiz and Reynaldo de Guzman The case of Kian delos Santos has been likened to the cases of other teenagers, 19-year-old Carl Arnaiz and 14-year-old Reynaldo "Kulot" De Guzman. Arnaiz went missing for 10 days; his dead body was found on August 28 in a morgue in Caloocan. According to the Caloocan police, Arnaiz was involved in a robbery at
C-3 road. The police alleged that Arnaiz drew a gun to rob a taxi driver. Arnaiz allegedly shot responding police officers PO1 Jefrey Perez and PO1 Ricky Arquilita, who fired back and killed the teenager. The police claimed in an August 30 report that they retrieved two packs of marijuana in Arnaiz's pocket and three packs of a substance suspected to be
methamphetamine in his backpack. CCTV footage of the streets of Brgy. 28, Caloocan, showed three men in motorcycles followed by a taxi at 3:40 a.m. Arnaiz allegedly robbed the taxi driver named Tomas Bagcal. Investigation team found .38 caliber revolver and three bullet containers that were allegedly used to return fire at the police. On September 4, a
paraffin test concluded that Arnaiz's right hand tested positive of gunpowder residue. The PNP conducted a DNA test on the corpse and said that the body is not De Guzman's. However, his parents disputed the findings saying that they are certain that the body is that of their son. According to the investigation, de Guzman sustained 30 stab wounds in the body. On January 19, 2018, in a 35-page resolution released to reporters, the
Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted Perez and Arquilita with two counts of murder after probable cause for the slay of the two teenagers was found. Perez and Arquilita were also charged with two counts of torture and three counts of planting of evidence. The Caloocan
Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 122 issued warrant arrests against the aforementioned police officers. The warrants of arrest were dated January 23. No bail was recommended. The two accused were later underwent custody in the
National Capital Region Police Office in
Taguig City until March when Branch 122, upon granting the prosecution's manifestation, ordered their detention at the
Valenzuela City Detention Center. The case faced issue on jurisdiction. It was said that the murder took place in
Navotas and not in
Caloocan, citing witness' claim. In May, Branch 122 dismissed the murder charges against the policemen. DOJ later re-filed the case before the Navotas City RTC. However, the Branch 122 judge said that while withdrawal of charges mid-trial is not permitted by the law, the legal option would be dropping such without causing harm. Since then, the case underwent trial at the Navotas RTC Branch 287. Navotas City RTC later dropped the charges against him and, in August, denied the bail petition of the two accused.
Conviction In its decision dated November 10, 2022, and later promulgation of the case, Caloocan
RTC Branch 122 convicted Perez of the following: • Violation of
Anti-Torture Act (Republic Act 9745); sentencing him to both a prison term (6 months to four years and two months) in the Arnaiz case, and
reclusión perpetua in the de Guzman case in relation to
Family Courts Act of 1997 (RA 8369). On April 10, 2025, the
Court of Appeals upheld Perez' conviction for torture and planting of evidence. The case was elevated to the
Supreme Court through consolidated appeals and a petition arising from the Court of Appeals’ decision affirming the Regional Trial Court's conviction of the accused for murder. Due to differing procedural actions taken by the accused after the appellate ruling, issues arose regarding the timeliness and propriety of the remedies pursued, including the issuance of a partial entry of judgment declaring the decision final and executory as to some of the accused. On December 22, 2025, The Supreme Court resolved these procedural issues and, in the interest of justice, treated the defective petition as an appeal and consolidated it with the other appeals. Upon review, the Court found no reversible error in the Court of Appeals’ findings and held that the evidence sufficiently established the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt, including the presence of conspiracy and treachery. Accordingly, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals’ decision in full, sustaining the convictions and penalties imposed. ==Notes==