To sue whistleblower for ‘malicious’ claim
RETIRED police Lt. Gen. Jonnel Estomo yesterday denied involvement in the abduction and killing of “sabungeros” or cockfighting enthusiasts whose remains were reportedly dumped at Taal Lake.
Estomo, a former director of the National Capital Region Police Office, was among the 12 policemen named by suspect-turned-whistleblower Julie Patidongan, alias Totoy, last Monday to be involved in the case.
The 11 others, who are now subject of an administrative complaint he lodged before the National Police Commission (Napolcom), included a colonel, a lieutenant colonel and a major, among others.
“I categorically deny my involvement in any manner and I will present evidence to clear my name because the association of my name (to the case) lacks proof,” Estomo said in a statement.
“I am ready to answer any allegations at the proper forum to clear my name. I have faith to the impartial justice system and due process of the law,” he said.
He added: “While I won’t get ahead of any investigation, I believe that only the truth, not words from other people, should prevail in the quest for justice.”
Estomo said he is taking legal action against Patidongan for defaming his character and his reputation.
“My lawyers are preparing the appropriate charges for the malicious and baseless accusations against me. I believe that in the end, justice will prevail,” he said.
Estomo said he respects the call for justice of the kins of the missing sabungeros, adding that it is their right to know what really happened to their loved ones and achieve justice.
Napolcom vice chairman Rafael Vicente Calinisan said the commission will do its best to resolve the administrative case filed by Patidongan within 60 days.
He also clarified that Patidongan’s complaint affidavit included 18 names, 13 of whom are still in the active service while the five others have already been dismissed.
Calinisan on Monday said the Napolcom cannot pursue administrative charges against police officers who are longer in the active police service. However, he said they can be held criminally liable before the courts.
Calinisan they are going to evaluate the whistleblower’s complaint.
“We are sending orders, summons to all these respondents. So we hope they are going to answer the case filed by alias Totoy before the Napolcom,” he said.
In line with the thrust of the Napolcom to resolve administrative cases lodged before the agency, Calinisan said: “We will make good on that promise. We are going to try our best to solve it within 60 days as we have promised.”
Patidongan has claimed that the policemen, led by Estomo, abducted and killed the sabungeros allegedly on orders of business tycoon Charlie “Atong” Ang for cheating in e-sabong and cockfighting games.
Patidongan was former farm manager of Ang.
UNDERWATER OPS
Patidongan has said the remains of the sabungeros were buried in Taal Lake. The Coast Guard has so far recovered five sacks, believed to be containing what appeared to be bones, from the lake since last week.
The PNP Forensic Group (FG) said it has already received 91 samples from the items recovered in Taal Lake.
“As of now, 91 samples were submitted to the us,” said Lt. Col. Edmar Dela Torre, chief of Forensic Group’s DNA Laboratory Division.
“There are pieces which we can say are of non-human origin as reported by our medical legal officers from 4A (Calabarzon),” said Dela Torre.
Asked how many samples might be of human origin, Dela Torre said: “As of now, there might be six pieces. Out of 91, six.”
He said the samples will undergo further examination, for possible crossmatching with the DNA samples taken from the kins of the missing sabungeros.
Dela Torre said it may take five to seven days to determine if they are indeed human bones, while the DNA crossmatching process may take another five to seven days.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla yesterday said the underwater search and recovery operation for the remains of the sabungeros may last up to six months.
“This will take a while, probably another six months of searching for remains in the lake. Many people died here, and what we’re doing is no easy task, searching for human remains in a vast lake that spans more than 200 kilometers,” Remulla told radio DZMM.
He said that even if the authorities want to know right away what happened to the sabungeros, the probe cannot be rushed.
On Monday, Remulla asked for patience in the ongoing investigation and search and recovery operations for the missing sabungeros.
He also vowed that authorities will take a painstaking and meticulous approach in solving the case, saying that “bara-bara” or haphazard investigation is unacceptable.
Remulla said authorities will get the DNA of interested and even uninterested family members of the missing sabungeros this week to help in the ongoing investigation.
The PNP has said they have already secured DNA samples from 12 family members of the missing sabungeros.
‘RETURN’
Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon said the Department of Justice (DOJ) is willing to talk to the sabungeros’ families who have withdrawn from the case should they seek to return amid the recent developments.
Fadullon, however, said no family member has so far reached out to the DOJ.
“Now, nothing can stop them from returning if they want to be a part of the case again, though, of course, that may be viewed with some caution considering that they have already entered into a point where they settled,” he said.
“But with all these developments, maybe they were encouraged. So we need to talk to them for us to know the reason why they withdrew from the case in the first place and what are their reason to return and be of help in this case,” he also said.
Fadullon said that with or without them, the DOJ will still pursue the case against those behind the disappearance and presumed killings of the sabungeros.
In 2023, the families of six missing sabungeros – John Claude Inonog, Rondel Cristorum, Mark Joseph Velasco, Rowel Gomez, and brothers James Baccay and Marlon Baccay – withdrew as complainants from the kidnapping and serious illegal detention case filed by the DOJ before the Manila Regional Trial Court.
Named suspects in the case are six security officers at the Manila Arena, namely Patidongan, Gleer Codilla, Mark Carlo Zabala, Virgilio Bayog, Johnny Consolacion, and Roberto Matillano Jr.
HOUSE PROBE
At the House, Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante jr. filed House Resolution No. 53 calling for an inquiry into the case of the missing sabungeros.
Abante, who formerly chaired the House Committee on Human Rights in the 19th Congress, also urged the House of Representatives to reconvene the quad committee so it could look into the matter.
“The disappearance of the ‘missing sabungeros’ is no different from the extrajudicial killings in the fight against illegal drugs, a clear violation of human rights which is no longer just about gambling but about justice, accountability, the rule of law, and blatant disrespect of and disregard to the value and dignity of human life,” the resolution said.
In the 19th Congress, the quad panel, composed of the House Committees on Dangerous Drugs, Public Order and Safety, Public Accountability and Human Rights, investigated the EJKs under the Duterte administration’s war on drugs and the criminal activities of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
Also yesterday, Abante filed House Bill No. 1876 seeking to prohibit all forms of online and offsite gambling, including online cockfighting or e-sabong, and House Bill No. 1877 which seeks to ban the promotion of online gambling and related content. – With Ashzel Hachero and Wendell Vigilia
