
Missing sabungeros whistleblower under PNP protective custody —Torre
'Si 'Totoy' nasa protective custody namin siya sa ngayon,' PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III said in a press briefing.
('Totoy' is in our protective custody right now.)
'But he's already applying for the Witness Protection Program dahil kapag siya ay nag-qualify i-turn over namin siya sa Department of Justice. Sa ngayon naman, madali na 'yun. Na kay [Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin 'Boying' Remulla] na ang final say d'yan sa kaniyang protection,' he added.
(But he's already applying for the Witness Protection Program and when he qualifies, we will turn him over to the Department of Justice. Right now, that's easy. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin 'Boying' Remulla has the final say on his protection.)
Meanwhile, the 15 cops whom the whistleblower recently implicated in the disappearances of the missing sabungeros are under restrictive custody at Camp Crame in Quezon City, according to Torre.
'Marami sa kanila nasa support units. May mga nasa region. May mga nasa [area police commands]. Iba-ibang mga units sila. Lahat sila active except for one na due for retirement at tatlong dating na-dismiss,' Torre said, referring to the assignments of the 15 cops.
(Many of them are in support units. Some are in the region. Some are in the APC. They are in different units. They are all active except for one who is due for retirement and three who were previously dismissed.)
Seven cops allegedly involved in the abduction of the cockfighting enthusiasts were initially dismissed from the service as early as January 2023.
Torre said some of the 15 cops in restrictive custody were included in the alleged up to P2 million monthly payola from Atong Ang, who was among the supposed masterminds in the disappearances as claimed by the whistleblower.
According to the PNP chief, the police are looking into more personalities possibly involved in the case and their possible locations.
A total of 34 cockfighting enthusiasts have been reported missing from 2021 to 2022. According to the police, the missing personalities were kidnapped allegedly due to match fixing or cheating in the cockfighting games.
The whistleblower claims that the victims were already buried in Taal Lake.
However, Torre said the police are also checking other alleged 'disposal areas' of the missing sabungeros. He added that they received information that some sabungeros were burned. —AOL, GMA Integrated News
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GMA Network
6 hours ago
- GMA Network
Missing sabungeros whistleblower under PNP protective custody —Torre
The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday confirmed that the whistleblower in the case of the missing cockfighting enthusiasts or sabungeros is under the protective custody of the police. 'Si 'Totoy' nasa protective custody namin siya sa ngayon,' PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III said in a press briefing. ('Totoy' is in our protective custody right now.) 'But he's already applying for the Witness Protection Program dahil kapag siya ay nag-qualify i-turn over namin siya sa Department of Justice. Sa ngayon naman, madali na 'yun. Na kay [Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin 'Boying' Remulla] na ang final say d'yan sa kaniyang protection,' he added. (But he's already applying for the Witness Protection Program and when he qualifies, we will turn him over to the Department of Justice. Right now, that's easy. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin 'Boying' Remulla has the final say on his protection.) Meanwhile, the 15 cops whom the whistleblower recently implicated in the disappearances of the missing sabungeros are under restrictive custody at Camp Crame in Quezon City, according to Torre. 'Marami sa kanila nasa support units. May mga nasa region. May mga nasa [area police commands]. Iba-ibang mga units sila. Lahat sila active except for one na due for retirement at tatlong dating na-dismiss,' Torre said, referring to the assignments of the 15 cops. (Many of them are in support units. Some are in the region. Some are in the APC. They are in different units. They are all active except for one who is due for retirement and three who were previously dismissed.) Seven cops allegedly involved in the abduction of the cockfighting enthusiasts were initially dismissed from the service as early as January 2023. Torre said some of the 15 cops in restrictive custody were included in the alleged up to P2 million monthly payola from Atong Ang, who was among the supposed masterminds in the disappearances as claimed by the whistleblower. According to the PNP chief, the police are looking into more personalities possibly involved in the case and their possible locations. A total of 34 cockfighting enthusiasts have been reported missing from 2021 to 2022. According to the police, the missing personalities were kidnapped allegedly due to match fixing or cheating in the cockfighting games. The whistleblower claims that the victims were already buried in Taal Lake. However, Torre said the police are also checking other alleged 'disposal areas' of the missing sabungeros. He added that they received information that some sabungeros were burned. —AOL, GMA Integrated News


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Mother nabbed in Pasay for selling one-month-old baby online
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GMA Network
3 days ago
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Philippines asks Japan's help searching Taal Lake for missing sabungeros
Interest in the unsolved cases has surged since the televised appearance of a witness -- since identified as Julie "Dondon" Patidongan, a recent mayoral candidate -- who claimed to know where bodies had been submerged in Taal Lake. (Photo: Darlene Cay/GMA Integrated News) The Philippines' justice secretary said Friday he has asked for Japan's technical assistance to help the search for dozens of cockfighting participants allegedly killed by rogue police and dumped in a lake south of Manila. The case is tied to a spate of mysterious disappearances in 2022 in the Southeast Asian nation's huge cockfighting industry, known locally as "sabong". Interest in the unsolved cases has surged since the televised appearance of a witness -- since identified as Julie "Dondon" Patidongan, a recent mayoral candidate -- who claimed to know where bodies had been submerged in Taal Lake. Justice Secretary Crispin Remulla said Friday he now had multiple witnesses who could "testify where (in the water) those missing persons were thrown". He added that a group of 15 unnamed national police officers were under investigation and put on restricted duty. "They carried out the executions," he said. "I just signed a letter for the Japanese government asking for assistance to enable us to do a lakebed mapping and... other technology that we need," Remulla added. "We need a scientific approach here. We cannot leave it to chance." Located about two hours south of the capital, Taal Lake is home to an active island volcano and spans more than 230 square kilometers (89 square miles) with a depth of 172 meters (564 feet) in some places. Patidongan initially appeared in silhouette in an interview with GMA Integrated News before later revealing himself, saying he feared for his life. He has identified Charlie ''Atong'' Ang, a man involved in livestreamed cockfighting operations, as the mastermind behind the disappearances. Ang has denied all charges and on Thursday filed a lawsuit accusing Patidongan, a former employee, of slander, threats and conspiracy to commit robbery. The justice department made a series of arrests in late 2022 of police and security personnel allegedly involved with the disappearance of 34 cockfight industry participants that Remulla said were "probably dead". Since his televised appearance, Patidongan has claimed the actual number could be as high as 100. Filipinos from all walks of life wager millions of dollars on matches every week between roosters who fight to the death with razor-sharp metal spurs tied to their legs. The sport, banned in many other countries, survived coronavirus pandemic restrictions by going online, drawing many more gamblers who use their mobile phones to place wagers. Former president Rodrigo Duterte banned the livestreaming of cockfights shortly before leaving office in 2022, but it has continued due to lax enforcement. —Agence France-Presse