Kin of murdered Bohol mayor hail Aguirre’s decision

The family of murdered Bien Unido, Bohol, Mayor Gisela Boniel has expressed elation over the decision of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II to pursue the prosecution for parricide of the victim’s husband, Bohol provincial Board Member Niño Rey Boniel.

Aguirre on Tuesday quickly reversed the Jan. 29 resolution issued by Justice Undersecretary Reynante Orceo which had invalidated an earlier order of the Lapu-Lapu City Prosecutor’s Office to indict Boniel and two others for the killing of his wife in June last year.

“We thank [Aguirre] for his swift action,” said the family’s lawyer, Virgil Ligutan.

Orceo had ruled that the case should have been handled by the Department of Justice prosecutors in Bohol, where the victim was allegedly abducted before she was shot dead by her husband. —Marlon Ramos