JUSTICE Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla yesterday said the suspect-turned-witness in the case of the 34 missing cockfighters (sabungeros) has identified several government officials who are allegedly involved in the case.
Remulla said alias “Totoy” made the disclosure as he bared more details about the case of the cockfighting enthusiasts, who were abducted and have been missing since 2021.
He refused to name names, saying that they are now building up the case and would not like to jeopardize their investigation by prematurely revealing the identities of the officials.
“May binanggit (government officials) kaya lang syempre kasama sa investigation ‘yan. We cannot reveal many things yet. Tuloy-tuloy lang ang pag-aaral natin (He provided some names [of government officials] and they are part of our investigations. But we cannot reveal many things yet since we are still investigating the case),” he said.
Remulla said alias Totoy also disclosed that more than 34 sabungeros have been abducted and killed by the group.
“There’s more than 34 according to his recollection. Itong 34 eto lang ang talagang hinanap ng mga pamilya at tuloy-tuloy na naghahanap sila kaya nagkaroon talaga ng interes ang estado rito (The 34 [sabungeros in the case] are those whose families searched for them),” he said.
“There are more than 34. There must be a hundred of them,” he added.
Remulla said that according to alias Totoy, the group behind the abduction was paid P500,000 for every sabungero killed.
He said the suspected-turned-witness also shared documents and videos to prove his disclosures.
“I think he is very credible. I think he has presented enough proof,” he said of the suspect.
“He was a trusted person of one of the principals kaya alam n’ya lahat to the extent na may access tayo sa mga dokumento na ginagamit ng mga ito (He was one of the trusted persons of one of the principals that’s why he knows everything to the extent that we have access to documents that they are using),” he added.
Remulla said alias Totoy will have to be discharged first as a suspect, noting that he was among those who was charged, before he can qualify for the government’s Witness Protection Program.
Remulla said that so far, alias Totoy’s disclosures are deemed important to build up the case.
“Isa ‘yan sa ating pinag-aaralan ngayon kung paano natin bubuuin ng husto kasi this is a big case. It is not something that’s cut and dry. It’s something that has to be pursued in every angle,” he said.
Remulla earlier said the DOJ was taking seriously the claim of alias Totoy that the victims have been killed and buried in Taal Lake.
He said the DOJ will seek the assistance of the Japanese government in locating and searching for the remains of the missing sabungeros.
“I have instructed my staff to draft a letter to the Japanese government and to ask for their Remotely Operated Vehicles and other equipment so that we can search the lakebed of Taal,” he said.
He earlier said the DOJ will also tap Navy divers to search the waters of Taal Lake to look for the remains of the victims.
Remulla acknowledged the difficulties in unraveling the case and those behind it, but he said the DOJ will leave no stone unturned in its investigation.
“It’s like trying to prove cases against the mafia… Pinakamahirap mag-prove ng kaso sa (It’s hard to prove cases involving) organized crime but we are not backing down from this,” he said.
“Hindi ito madaling patunayan kaya nag-iingat tayo sa ating mga binibitawang salita (This is a difficult case so we are careful with the words we say),” he added.
