QUEZON CITY, Philippines, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Videotape of the mangled bodies of massacre victims was shown Wednesday at a bail hearing for a Philippine mayor accused of masterminding the killings.
Andal Ampatuan Jr., the mayor of Datu Unsay, faces multiple murder charges for the Nov. 23 slayings of 57 people in the town named after his powerful clan, GMANews.tv reports.
The footage made by a government videographer included the sound of the mangled bodies being unearthed from shallow pits.
Ampatuan's lawyer asked the presiding judge to have the videos played without sound but Judge Jocelyn Solis Reyes turned down the request.
"Gasps or other commentaries would influence the viewers as well as the judge," attorney Sigfrid Fortun said.
Reyes instructed the prosecution and its witnesses not to make "commentaries" while describing the footage.
