DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 1 May) — The City Council may file a case against a condominium where a couple was killed last April 21, if the ongoing police investigation would show that there was no functional CCTV inside the building when the crime occurred, a councilor said.
“If kailangan natin mag-file ng case against violators so that we will have a test case para maipakita natin na we are very serious in this ordinance then we will do so in the proper time,” First District Councilor Luna Acosta, chair of the committee on peace and public safety said during the Aprubado sa Konseho press conference in Sangguniang Panglungsod Tuesday morning.
Jeffrey Patac Predas and his girlfriend, Jennifer Delos Santos Chavez, were found dead inside Camella Northpoint Condominium last April 21.
But the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) failed to obtain video footage since there was no functional CCTV inside the condominium.
Rather, the police had to gather testimonies from condominium residents that could lead them to the identities of suspects, DCPO spokesperson Captain Hazel Tuazon said in a press conference last April 24.
On Thursday, DCPO autopsy results revealed that Jeffrey Patac Predas was already dead from stab wounds while her girlfriend Jennifer Delos Santos Chavez also sustained penetrating wounds when their bodies were found.
“We can say it is a violation na nakita nila (that they found) but we are still waiting for a formal report of the DCPO before we can act on an ordinance,” Acosta said, noting she was told the police are prioritizing the investigation of the killings before looking into the absence of a functional CCTV inside the condominium.
Acosta said that since the passage of the ordinance on November 21, 2023, not all establishments in the city have been inspected for compliance owing to lack of personnel.
Under the ordinance, the Business Bureau must require establishment owners to install upgraded CCTV cameras when renewing their business permits, and the Public Safety and Security Office (PSSO) will schedule the compulsory inspection of installed CCTVs.
Businesses with capital exceeding P3 million are obliged to have CCTV cameras with high-definition analog or at least two megapixel digital camera, 0.1 lux minimum illumination, 2.8 to 3.6mm focal length, auto-iris focus lens, and 1/30 to 1/50,000s shutter speed.
It must also capture less than 50 meters of infrared range, 120 dB wide dynamic range, pan and tilt adjustment of 0 to 180 degrees and rotate adjustment of 0 to 360 degrees, and must have a vandal-proof and IP 66 weatherproof casing.
The amended ordinance requires that cameras must also feature a 30 frames-per-second (FPS) capability, in 720p or 1080p resolution, at least 10 megabits per second video bitrate and at least 64 kilobits per second of audio bitrate, and has a time-stamping feature.
Businesses with capitalization of less than P3 million also need to comply with the new CCTV ordinance but with some exceptions, such as installing a standalone camera that can cover a visual distance of up to 30 feet.
Acosta urged establishments to not wait for inspections before upgrading or replacing their CCTV cameras.
She added that small establishments should have at least two CCTVs, one at the entrance or exit point and one at their common place of business. For bigger establishments, the number of entrances or exits, lobbies, and main place of business should be the same as the CCTVs.
For buildings with multiple doors, such as hotels, malls, and condominiums, business owners are only required to put up CCTVs at their lobby and entrance and exit points. (Ian Carl Espinosa/MindaNews)