Murder of Fr. Tentorio may be related to his anti-mining advocacy

MANILA, Philippines—The group tasked to investigate the murder of Italian priest Fr. Fausto Tentorio—Special Investigation Task Group Fausto or SITG Fausto—was looking into several motives of the still-unknown motorcycle-riding suspects, said Philippine National Police spokesperson Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. on Tuesday.

He said they were verifying information on the threats Tentorio has received prior to the incident.

The PNP spokesman declined to reveal the motives being considered by SITG Fausto but admitted that one of the motives being checked by authorities was Tentorio’s being “vocal about mining” in the area.

It was however “still too early” to speculate on which motive may have drove the gunmen to end Tentorio’s life and SITG Fausto was “not ruling out other motives,” said the PNP spokesperson.

He said SITG Fausto started gathering information and physical evidence on Monday. It has also found some witnesses.

Authorities, however, still have to check whether a description of the gunman could be formed based on the witnesses’ accounts, added Cruz.

Cruz revealed that local chief executives were meeting with SITG Fausto commander Chief Superintendent Lester Camba to ensure a systematized investigation on the case