The Department of Justice (DOJ) panel of prosecutors conducting a preliminary investigation into the complaints against suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag in connection with the killing of broadcaster Percy Lapid and alleged middleman Jun Villamor, has submitted the cases for resolution.
“The cases are now submitted for resolution,” Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Charlie Guhit said in an interview, adding that the camp of Bantag has submitted his counter affidavit.
Bantag and former BuCor deputy security officer Ricardo Zulueta were tagged as the masterminds behind the killing of Lapid and Villamor. They are both facing two complaints of murder.
“Respondent DG Bantag is represented by his counsel, Atty. Balisong. They submitted a counter affidavit ex abundanti ad cautelam, meaning they submitted their counter affidavit with caution,” Guhit said.
“For other respondents, no submission of counter affidavits, so similar to respondent DG Bantag, the cases are submitted for resolution,” he added.
The DOJ prosecutor said Atty. Julieta Puday, a counsel of Zulueta, requested copies of the subpoena, complaints, and supporting documents during the hearing.
He said Zulueta was unable to submit his counter affidavit.
“By way of courtesy, we furnished her the complete set of the document for purposes of the preliminary investigation. So it’s up to them on how to act or proceed with their case,” he said.
Guhit said the persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) who are respondents in the complaints submitted their affidavits as their counter affidavits.
Meanwhile, Christopher Bacoto, another alleged middleman in the killing, also submitted a counter affidavit, the investigating prosecutor said.
The prosecutor said self-confessed gunman Joel Escorial has no counter affidavit except the affidavit he executed in connection with the case.
Escorial’s alleged accomplices—Israel Dimaculangan, Edmund Dimaculangan, and a certain Orlando—also did not submit counter affidavits.
Atty. Rocky Balisong, the legal counsel of Bantag, asserted that that they are still questioning the jurisdiction of the DOJ over the case.
“In other words, this will not be treated as abandoning our motion for inhibition because we’ll still push with it before the proper authorities. That’s our position for now,” he said.
Balisong said they also pointed out “several inconsistencies” in the testimonies of Escorial and the PDLs in their counter-affidavit.
“One of which is, of course, the gunman’s statement that he said that as early as September 5, he and Villamor talked about having Percy Lapid killed. So that’s what they talked about,” he said.
“And then here comes the statement of the two PDLs Gallicia and Labra stating that they came up with an agreement for the killing of Percy Lapid on the second week of September,” he added.
Lapid was shot dead in Las Piñas City on October 3 while Villamor died at the New Bilibid Prison. An autopsy by forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun showed the remains of Villamor to have a “history of asphyxia by plastic bag suffocation.”