Justice Secretary de Lima orders parallel probe into QC carjackings, killings

MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila De Lima ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a parallel investigation into the brutal deaths of Teresita Teano and Cheryl Sarmiento in Quezon City last week.

Sarmiento was ambushed along Commonwealth Avenue last June 14, while Teano was gunned down as she tried to fight off two carjackers who also ran her over as they drove off with her brand new Hyundai Accent along Kamuning St., also in Quezon City last June 15.

“I will immediately order the NBI to conduct a parallel investigation,” De Lima said.

“It is important that these cases remain in the consciousness of the people especially if they are unresolved,” she added.

Teano’s father, former Interior and Local Government Region 1 Regional Director Atty. Odon Teano, as well as the husband of Ms. Sarmiento, Jonas Sarmiento, met with De Lima to ask for assistance to expedite the investigations into their respective cases. The father of another carnapping victim (Venson Evangelista) who was likewise killed by the perpetrators of the crime early this year, joined the meeting.

“I join them (referring to Mr. Arturo Evangelista and Teano) in asking for a parallel investigation of the cases,” Sarmiento said. “The more resources, I believe the faster the resolution will be.”