Justice Secretary Leila de Lima
MANILA, Philippines–Two members of Tau Gamma Phi (TGP) fraternity—including one stricken with cancer—have surrendered to authorities to offer help in the investigation but with the hope of clearing their names in the death of hazing victim Guillo Cesar Servando.
National Bureau of Investigation Deputy Director Ricardo Pangan on Wednesday said the Department of Justice (DOJ) had provisionally admitted to the Witness Protection Program (WPP) the first of the two—a 19-year-old man who surrendered to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima the previous night.
The other TGP member yielded to NBI-Death Investigation Unit head Joel Tovera Wednesday morning.
Pangan maintained that the second frat man remained a suspect. “His surrender is a mitigating factor, but at the moment he is considered a suspect pending assessment of his statement,” the NBI officials said.
The names of the two men were being withheld pending further validation of their statements, he said.
‘Delicate condition’
The first man who surrendered was in a “delicate medical condition,” according to Tovera, who said the ailment prevented the teenager from enrolling this school year.
An Inquirer source said the man was stricken with “Stage 2 cancer” affecting the lymph nodes in the neck area.
Pangan said the first suspect decided to surrender to tell his side of the story, after his name came out in the news.
Pangan also said that with the additional statements coming from the two men, a case for violation of the antihazing law may soon be filed in the DOJ in coordination with the Makati City police, which is conducting a parallel investigation.
Caretaker now a suspect
The frat house where the TGP initiation rites for Servando and three other students of De la Salle-College of St. Benilde took place is located at Barangay (village) Palanan, Makati.
Tovera also said Jomar Pajarito, the caretaker of the Palanan property, is now considered a suspect after he was identified by the surviving neophytes as the one who fed them chili and chocolates and made them sniff ammonia to keep them from passing out during their ordeal.
He said more than 10 frat members would be charged for violation of the antihazing law, including Pajarito.
Also on Wednesday, the Bureau of Immigration confirmed that one of the suspects, Kevin John Navoa, had already left for the United States on July 1, three days after the hazing incident.
De Lima said the man who surrendered to her Tuesday night had executed an affidavit detailing what he saw during the initiation rites, but that he denied laying a hand on any of the neophytes.
“He had a role other than hitting or punching the neophytes,” the justice secretary told reporters.
The man’s testimony was initially evaluated by WPP officials and was found to be “satisfactory,” enough for him to be granted provisional admission to the program, she said.
The man had also met with Servando’s father, Aurelio, who left it to the DOJ’s discretion whether the man would be used as a state witness, she added.
De Lima said Aurelio also told her that he had been contacted by the parents of another suspect who also wanted to surrender.