MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a probe and case build-up on what he described as “horrible murder” of Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Jovencio Senados.
In a department order issued Tuesday, Guevarra required NBI Officer-in-Charge Eric Distor to submit reports on the progress of the subject investigation.
“We are shocked by the audacity of this attack. It highlights once again the grave peril that our prosecutors face each day in the discharge of their duties,” Guevarra said.
Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento said: “We condemn this to the highest level. We will avail all the resources of the DOJ to obtain justice.”
Senados was the 50th member of the legal profession and the 11th prosecutor killed under the Duterte administration, based on the list by the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL)
“The claims to ‘peace and order’ and purported ‘rule of law’ once again fly in the prevailing culture of violence and climate of impunity engendered by official hate speech and penchant for vindictiveness,” NUPL President Edre Olalia said
Senados was on his way to Manila Tuesday morning when armed men blocked his path and peppered his vehicle with bullets along Quirino Avenue.
He died on the spot. [ac]