DOJ ON BLAST WITNESS’ ESCAPE
‘Check criminal liability of custodians’
Ex-NCR CDIG chief files leave
By Tetch Torres, Abigail Kwok
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 15:26:00 10/06/2008
Filed Under: Congress Blast
MANILA, Philippines -- (UPDATE) Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez asked the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday to look into the other possible criminal liabilities of the police custodians of a key witness in the November 2007 bomb attack at the House of Representatives who escaped earlier in the day.
Gonzalez said the officers in charge of securing Ikram Indama should also be relieved and suspended, including Senior Superintendent Erickson Velasquez, former National Capital Region director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).
For his part, Velasquez filed for a 10-day leave, saying it was to pave the way for a “fair and open investigation” into the escape of Indama.
Velasquez, who is the new director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Division (CIDD), turned over the CIDG-NCR post to Senior Superintendent Isagani Nerez Monday morning, soon after the 6 a.m. escape of Indama, an alleged member of the Abu Sayyaf and star witness to the attack that killed four people, including Basilan Representative Wahab Akbar.
“They should be relieved,” Gonzalez said. “With the investigation ongoing, they should [also] be suspended.”
“There should be an investigation conducted by the PNP if there other criminal liabilities,” he added. “It is clear that there is already [a] violation of the penal code.”
"It is clear that there is infidelity here," Gonzalez said, adding that the PNP investigation “should determine if there are other liabilities of these officers.”
CIDG director Chief Superintendent Raul Castańeda earlier said CIDG- NCR personnel could be liable for Indama's alleged escape, and that the unit would conduct an investigation into the incident.
Velasquez welcomed the CIDG investigation and Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez's statement, but called on both parties to “review first the circumstances.”. Based on the witness protection program, Indama is not [in] detention but under protection. So if he leaves, it is considered voluntary on his part.”
Indama, a suspect-turned-state witness, was granted police custody by the DoJ under its witness protection program last July 10.
“As far as I am concerned, there are three layers of command before me, including the duty officer and the duty supervisor,” Valesquez said. “So the circumstance is not directly under me. But granted, I [was] the director at that time.”
Gonzalez said they still cannot determine if Indama’s escape would be a setback to the case. "That depends on how strong his testimony is and whether there are other witnesses," he explained.
The Quezon City Regional Trial Court has not yet discharged Indama as a witness.
Government prosecutors filed a motion to discharge before the lower court asking that Indama be removed from the charge sheet.
The prosecutors said Indama’s testimony is consistent in identifying former congressman Gerry Salapuddin as the alleged mastermind of the bombing. Indama, who worked for Salapuddin, said he heard the former lawmaker order the killing of Akbar.
Aside from Akbar, also killed were a member of his staff, Julasiri Niki Huyudini, Marcial Taldo, driver of Gabriela Representative Luzviminda Ilagan, and Maan Gale Bustalino, a member of the staff of Negros Oriental Representative Henry Pryde Teves.
Teves and Ilagan were injured in the incident.
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