The three officials of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) implicated in the kidnapping and killing of South Korean businessman Jee Ick-Joo asked the Department of Justice on Friday to dismiss the criminal case filed against them.
In a joint counter-affidavit, the NBI officials said their inclusion as respondents to the case was only because of the signed but unsworn affidavit of Supt. Rafael Dumlao, who has been tagged as the mastermind of the Jee kidnapping and slaying.
The NBI officials are Jose “Jojo” Yap, former deputy director for investigation services; Ricardo Diaz, former National Capital Region (NCR) director; and Roel Bolivar, former head of the Task Force Against Illegal Drugs.
In his affidavit, Dumlao said it was SPO3 Ricky Sta. Isabel who mentioned of the three NBI officials.
He said that, on Oct. 18, 2016, Sta. Isabel made a phone call allegedly to Diaz, who told him to give the go signal for the setup on Jee.
Despite such claim, the NBI officers it was established that such line of communication was made.
“We categorically and vehemently deny the self-serving allegations of Dumlao,” their counter-affidavit stated.
“His concocted and make-believe stories and imagined conversations are fabrications of his wild and fantastic imagination and malicious mind,” the affidavit said.
Aside from the three, others who filed counter-affidavits were Gream Funeral Srvices employees Epephany Gotera, Teodolito Macato Tarepe, Kevin Enriquez, Robert John Tobias, and Bernardo Maraya Jr.
Sta. Isabel and fellow co-respondent, SPO4 Roy Villegas, submitted their respective supplemental counter-affidavits to add to their counter-affidavits that they had previously filed.
Senior Assistant State Prosecutors Juan Pedro Navera said he would no longer allow anyone to file additional documents in the case before the panel of prosecutors.
Navera only allowed one of the respondents in the case, Senior Supt. Allan Macapagal of the Philippine National Police Anti-Kidnapping Group (PNP-AKG), to file his counter-affidavit on March 17.
Macapagal, who was tagged by the Sta. Isabel in his affidavit submitted to the DoJ, was not present Friday’s hearing due to a reassignment.
“After several manifestations, all the parties agreed to the ruling of the panel that the case is now submitted for resolution except for Supt. Allan Macapagal who will submit his counter-affidavit on March 17, 2017 at 2:00 p.m.,” read the minutes of Navera. /atm