Guevarra to NBI: Probe fatal shooting of former Cebu prosec

MANILA, Philippines — Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a probe on the death of former Cebu City Assistant City Prosecutor Mary Ann Castro.

Castro was shot dead Thursday evening while driving along Escario Street in Cebu City.

READ: Former prosecutor shot dead in Cebu

“I have immediately directed the NBI to investigate the ambush of Prosecutor Mary Ann Castro and to identify the perpetrators at the soonest possible time,” Guevarra said in a text message to reporters.

Lawyers groups including the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) and National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) have expressed alarm over the surge in the murder of members of the legal profession.

IBP said at least one lawyer is killed per month since August 2016.

On the other hand, data from NUPL showed that excluding judges and prosecutors, there are already a total of 24 lawyers killed in a span of two years. The figure is higher compared to the 27 lawyers killed in a span of eight years or from 2006 to 2014 based on the data from an international organization Lawyers for Lawyers.  /muf

READ:  24 lawyers killed in two years, 15 of which still unresolved—NUPL data