An independent autopsy on the body of the alleged middleman in the killing of broadcaster Percival Mabasa showed the remains have a “history of asphyxia by plastic bag suffocation.”
This as Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla revealed they are eyeing two possible masterminds in the murder case.
“Based on available information regarding the circumstances surrounding death, the manner is homicide,” forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun said on Saturday after conducting an autopsy on the body of Jun Villamor, who was tagged by the self-confessed gunman, Escorial, as the middleman the murder cases.
Villamor died on October 18 inside the New Bilibid Prison, hours after Escorial surrendered to authorities.
Remulla, for his part, said “the investigation is almost over” more than three weeks after Mabasa, also known as Percy Lapid, was shot dead in Las Piñas City on Oct. 3.
“It’s a matter of filing cases and probably being able to identify masterminds in these cases,” he said.
“We are saying masterminds, in the plural. We’re drawing out two persons of interest as masterminds, but we cannot say their names now because we have to determine everything, and we do not want to violate any rights of anybody. We’re just making sure that we conduct everything in accordance with the law,” the Justice chief added.
Fortun said Villamor’s urine sample also had traces of methamphetamine or shabu, which Remulla said was “a very important finding that was not present in the first [autopsy] report.”
“Rumors that shabu is present inside in the Bilibid, I think, is confirmed by the fact that the person who died had shabu or methamphetamine in the system,” Remulla said.
Aside from Villamor, another inmate, Christopher Bacoto, who is detained at a jail facility under the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), was also identified as a middleman by Escorial.
After Villamor’s death, his sister “Marisa” (not her real name), went to the Department of Justice and was placed under the government’s Witness Protection Program.
Marisa told investigators her brother texted her hours before he died, saying he feared for his life. She said her brother told her of three NBP detainees involved in the Mabasa killing and asked her to divulge the information if he died.
Initially, the PNP filed a murder complaint against Escorial and the three accomplices he named as brothers Edmon and Israel Dimaculangan, and a third person identified only as “Orly” or “Orlando.” The three are still at large.
Suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag was named as among the 160 persons of interest in the Mabasa case.
Bantag was placed under preventive suspension after Villamor’s death, which happened inside the NBP that is under BuCor.
Even President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he is not convinced the alleged middleman in the murder case died of natural causes.
“There’s no poison or medicine that was given to the said dead middleman. But I’m still not satisfied that it’s natural causes. Itold them to investigate further because there are ways to kill a person that do not show up in the medico legal,” Mr. Marcos said.