MURDER cases filed against suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag and several others in connection with the killing of radio commentator Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa in October last year was raffled yesterday by the Las Piñas City Regional Trial Court (RTC).
A court staff said the case will be handled by Branch 254 of the Las Piñas RTC and a decision on whether to issue warrants of arrest will be made next week.
State prosecutors indicted Bantag and his former deputy Ricardo Zulueta as “principals by inducement” in the killing of Lapid and National Bilibid Prisons inmate Cristito Palana Villamor alias Jun Villamor, alleged middleman in the case.
Self-confessed gunman Joel Escorial, brothers Israel and Edmon Dimaculangan, and an alias “Orly” were tagged as “principals by direct participation” in the killing of Lapid in October last year, while five Bilibid inmates — Denver Mayores, Alvin Labra, Aldrin Galicia, Alfie Penaredonda and Christopher Bacoto — are considered “principals by indispensable cooperation.”
The same indictment tagged Labra and Galicia as principals by inducement in Villamor’s killing while six other Bilibid inmates namely Mario Alvarez, Joseph Georfo, Christian Ramac, Ricky Salgado, Ronnie Dela Cruz and Joel Reyes were charged as principal by direct participation.
Bantag and Zulueta have repeatedly denied any link or knowledge on the killings of Lapid and Villamor and accused Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla of being biased.
The suspended BuCor chief has also asked Remulla to resign, saying he lost the moral ascendancy to lead the DOJ after his eldest son was arrested on illegal drug charges last year, though the charges were later dismissed by the Las Piñas RTC.
