After almost a decade, Lordei Hina and her family have finally achieved the justice they have long sought. On July 26, Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 91 found one of Lordei’s assailants guilty of robbery.

Lordei’s mother, Connie Hina, recalled how she saw her daughter shed tears upon hearing the verdict—something Lordei has not been able to do since being attacked by Dan Mar Vicencio and accomplice Dante Santos on February 1, 2012, in Vinzons Hall.

In a court order dated January 19, Judge Wilfredo Maynigo sentenced Vicencio to an indeterminate penalty of eight to 12 years in prison. The judge also ordered Vicencio to pay Hina P50,000 for civil indemnity.

While Lordei’s case has now been put to an end, the judge’s sentence to Vicencio was quite far from the Hina family’s expectations after all that Lordei had gone through.

Lordei’s History

Then a fourth year Political Science student and secretary-general of the Center for Nationalist Studies, Lordei Camille Anjuli Hina was stabbed several times in the head during a robbery attempt of Vicencio and Santos in the UP Diliman University Student Council (USC) office.

As a member of a committee for the upcoming UP Fair, Lordei was inside the USC office when her assailants entered Vinzons Hall at noon with a 12-inch icepick in a backpack. They later left the building at 3:15 p.m., carrying two laptops and leaving Lordei behind in a pool of blood.

Lordei survived the attack. She was eventually discharged after a three-month hospitalization and being in a state of comatose.

But Lordei has never been the same as before. While some of her memories before the incident remain intact, she hardly remembers the short-term ones. Her mother attributes this to her anterograde amnesia or the decreased ability to create new memories.

Connie, meanwhile, observed that her daughter has already had significant improvements during her long-term recuperation. After being paralyzed right after the incident, Lordei can now walk and move her body. She has also regained strength in her right hand after not being able to move it years ago.

Long Sought Justice

Years after the incident, Connie was happy with how Lordei improved, and even more when justice had finally been served.

Connie shared how she already accepted the fact of the tragic assault that happened to her daughter. She did not even expect that one of Lordei’s assailants would be found guilty now.

“Matagal ko nang na-accept ‘yan, na sabi ko nga, whatever happens kung makulong man o hindi, I moved on already na, wala akong galit, it’s long settled sa akin,” said Connie.

From the changing of the judge handling the case to the long wait in court, Connie had no idea how it would all turn out. But with their perseverance and the continued support of their private lawyer Eric Mesoga, they finally reached the end of the case.

However, upon knowing that the assailant was only charged with robbery, Connie thought it was not enough.

“Ang nakalagay lang kasi robbery with serious physical injury, when in fact, muntik nang ikamatay ng anak ko yun,” she said. “So it should really be attempted homicide or attempted murder.”

The civil indemnity of P50,000 was also not enough to compensate for all of their hospital bills which amounted to around P2.2 million, excluding the costs of medicines and therapies, Connie added.

Despite this, Connie is still thankful that the assailant will now answer for his crimes amid the complications they have encountered during the prosecution.

UP’s Lacking Support

Among these struggles was when the Diliman Legal Office (DLO) withdrew from Lordei’s case. According to the DLO, they were not used to prosecuting criminal cases like Lordei’s and were more accustomed to handling administrative proceedings. This forced Lordei’s family to seek a private lawyer.

UP made a lot of promises to their family, according to Connie, but only a few of these were fulfilled in the end.

“After nangako nang nangako na sasaluhin nila yung lahat ng gastos, from hospitalization to post-hospitalization, lahat ng therapy, at the end of the day, walang nangyari, kasi wala raw budget ang UP,” Connie said.

UP initially gave the family P380,000 as financial assistance, as discussed in the meeting of the UP Board of Regents in June 2012. However, according to a previous Collegian report, the board said that university funds may not be used to cover Lordei’s hospital expenses.

Lordei’s mother admitted she could have done something to counter UP’s decision. But since she did not want any conflict, she instead directed her energy to her daughter’s recovery.

Indeed, Connie has helped Lordei regain her older self. She said that her daughter remained cheerful and bore her assailants no ill will after forgetting what had happened to her in the first place.

Lordei even started a business called Lordei’s Whip and Bake Corner, for which her family helps her sell baked goods for her medication. Lordei also treats baking as part of her therapy upon her doctor’s advice to engage in productive activities.

“Tulung-tulong kami, nag-a-assist siya, tuwang-tuwa naman siya, at least ‘yan hindi niya nakakalimutan na meron siyang baked goods, kasi tuwing nagbe-bake, gusto niyang kumain din,” a visibly jubilant Connie recalled.

Lordei still hopes to be a lawyer someday to help the poor. Some nights, Lordei would ask her mother, “Mama, makakabalik pa kaya ako sa dati?” to which Connie replies, “Oo naman, kung gugustuhin mo, you can do it.” ●