DOJ wants priest in child trafficking case included in BI lookout bulletin

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has ordered the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to include in its lookout bulletin the priest arrested last July in the act of taking a 13-year old girl to a motel in Marikina City.

READ: Priest nabbed ‘en route to motel’ with 13-year-old girl

In a two-page urgent memorandum released Wednesday, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II ordered the BI to include Monsignor Arnel Lagarejos in its lookout bulletin.

“Considering the gravity of the offense allegedly committed, there is a strong possibility that he may attempt to place himself beyond the reach of the legal processes by leaving the country,” read the order.

A person subject of a lookout bulletin is not barred from going abroad. He or she only needs to secure permission from the DOJ before leaving.

Lagarejos is facing a complaint for Qualified Anti-Trafficking in Person Act before the DOJ and violation of the Anti-Child Abuse Law. He is facing a separate case for Anti-Trafficking before the Marikina court. But he was able to post bail amounting to P120,000. JPV