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DOJ denies Bantag’s motion for inhibition

January 18, 2023 Hector Lawas 217 views

THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has denied for “lack of merit” the motion for inhibition filed by suspended Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag who sought the recusal or “disqualification” of government prosecutors handling his murder complaints.

Following the denial, the DOJ can now resume its preliminary investigation into the deaths of broadcaster Percy Lapid and middleman Jun Villamor.

“Perusal of the motion (for inhibition) of respondent Bantag vis-a-vis the opposition filed thereof by the complainants, the Panel resolved to deny the motion.”

“The preliminary investigation for submission of counter-affidavits of respondents is set on 24 January 2023 at the Hall of Justice, Department of Justice, Padre Faura, Manila,” the DOJ news briefer read.

Bantag’s camp sought the inhibition of DOJ prosecutors handling the preliminary investigation of the two murder complaints, which were jointly filed by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

Atty. Rocky Balisong, the counsel of Bantag, pointed out that the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB), not the DOJ, has “exclusive jurisdiction” over the hugely-controversial death case since the suspended prison chief’s salary grade for his position is 30.

The NBI and PNP have filed two cases of murder against Bantag and several others that included gang leaders tagged in the sensational twin deaths.

The filing of the cases came to the fore after the NBI and PNP secured persons of interest (POIs) – who are mostly persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) – that provided essential information about the twin killings.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said that evidence provided by witnesses has pointed to Bantag as the alleged mastermind behind the deaths of Lapid and Villamor.

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