House urged to probe Espinosa slay
An Ifugao lawmaker and a former soldier-turned congressman want the House of Representatives to look into the killing of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. inside a jail in Leyte last Saturday.
Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat of the Liberal Party and Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano filed House Resolution 105 urging the chamber to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation into the death of Espinosa Sr. and another detained drug suspect Raul Yap at the subprovincial jail in Baybay City, Leyte.
“The death of Mayor Espinosa and Mr. Yap is a wake-up call for the House of Representatives to investigate all cases of alleged extrajudicial killings as a consequence of the war on drugs,” the resolution read.
In a statement, Baguilat cited the irregularities surrounding the police operation that killed the two, such as the search warrant which was served at dawn even though the two were already in jail.
Baguilat said there is a need to find out if there is a cover-up on the police operation.
“This is not to indict the entire Philippine National Police but to find out if there is a cover-up of Espinosa’s supposed links to other top officials,” Baguilat said.
“Also, it is really poor jail management if an inmate can get hold of a gun while incarcerated,” he added.
Baguilat said he hopes his resolution will have a better chance of being referred to a committee, after his earlier resolution calling for a probe into the spate of extrajudicial killings amid the administration’s war on drugs was sidelined by the House leadership.
“Early on in the President’s war on drugs, I called for an investigation on extra-judicial killings, partly to find out if our police had the proper equipment and discipline to carry on the anti-drug campaign, but I was stonewalled by the majority,” Baguilat said.
“These increasingly frequent drug-related deaths give the impression that our police are inept, like Keystone cops who always bungle the case. This may not be the case, but if our police need technical support, then we should give them that, and inquiries like the one I’m calling for will help us find out how we can help our police. I hope the majority will not squander another opportunity to really help in the anti-drug campaign,” Baguilat added.
On Nov. 5, Mayor Espinosa was killed by a raiding team of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) Region VIII in what the police claimed as a shoot-out, even though Espinosa and Yap were in detention at the sub-provincial jail in Baybay city.
READ: Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa killed in ‘firefight’ inside jail
The CIDG barged into jail facility to serve a search warrant on suspicion that the two were in possession of shabu and firearms inside the cells.
The CIDG alleged that Espinosa shot the police first, prompting them to fire back, fatally hitting the mayor in the head, chest and stomach.
The raiding team recovered a .38-pistol and a pack of shabu from the cell of Espinosa, and a .45-pistol, 27 packs of marijuana and 21 sachets of shabu from Yap.
The CIDG also took the jail’s CCTV hard drive that contained footage of the raid.
The police are set to investigate the incident which former police chief Senator Panfilo Lacson believed was a clear case of extrajudicial killing.
READ: Espinosa slay clear case of extra-judicial killing–Lacson
Espinosa Sr. death was seen as big blow to the government’s war on drugs as he was expected to name more personalities involved in the illegal drug trade of his son Kerwin, said to be the biggest drug operator in Eastern Visayas region. Kerwin, who left the country before Rodrigo Duterte became President, was arrested in Abu Dhabi recently.
Espinosa surrendered to authorities after he was named by Duterte as among the local chief executives allegedly involved in the drug trade.
READ: Leyte mayor’s tearful plea to son: Let’s surrender
