Witness describes a fear-stricken pal

The government’s witness yesterday told the jury about the confession made by Francis Eugenio over his killing somebody, an hour after the incident took place at Wendy’s Restaurant.

“He said I think I may have killed someone. He thought it was a cop,” Julius Sanares said.

Sanares was staying at a friend’s house when Eugenio came knocking around 4 a.m. on November 29, 1997.

He told the court that his friend for about four years was shaking and appeared frightened. Since, Eugenio borrowed his loaned pick-up, he was inquiring him about the vehicle.

However, his friend went on to make the hasty confession and left.

The next time he heard from Eugenio was after three days when he paged his brother. He instructed the Sanares brothers to pick him up at Seventh Day Adventist Clinic. It was already dark when they left to fetch him.

He told the court that while they were driving, Eugenio talked about a burglary that happened at Wendy’s where the alarm went off.

“He said, after 15 to 20 minutes, he saw a light outside. He panicked and he hit the cop with a crow bar,” Sanares said.

Together with Eugenio, the group was later arrested that night. He and his brother were charged as accessory to the crime.

However, defense lawyer Masood Karimapour questioned Sanares’ earlier signed statements which didn’t mention Eugenio’s alleged confession about committing the crime.

It was only two days before he took the witness stand that he made the testimony.

“Because the government has approached your lawyer asking about this deal,” Karimapour said.

Sanares and his lawyer made a deal with the government last Tuesday to testify against Eugenio.

The witness said his lawyer told him that he was going to get him a deal which will give him freedom.

“I have a family to take care of,” he said after Karimapour told the witness that he hated life inside prison.

The defense also told the jury that a police officer approached the witness last March 25, who was first inquiring about the pick-up van which Eugenio borrowed from him.

The witness refused to talk to him without his lawyer. But the officer told him that his statements will have nothing to do with the case against Eugenio and proceeded to question him.

The defense submitted the document to the court.