The Philippine National Police (PNP) Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) would file kidnapping and serious illegal detention charges against six security personnel tagged in the case of missing sabungeros at the Manila Arena.
PNP spokesperson Police Colonel Jean Fajardo told Dobol B TV that complaints would be filed “anytime this week.”
“Anytime this week po ay makakapagsampa na ng kaso ang CIDG patungkol po doon sa kaso ng mga nawawalang sabungero doon sa Manila Arena,” she said.
(The CIDG will file complaints in connection with the case of missing cockfight enthusiasts in Manila Arena)
“Ito pong mga pinangalanan at positively identified ng vital witness na ilan sa mga security personnel ng Manila Arena,” she added.
(The complaints will be filed against some of the security personnel of the Manila Arena who have been named and positively identified by a vital witness)
According to Fajardo, the witness has already signed a sworn statement detailing how the missing people were apprehended by security personnel and loaded into a van.
The suspects, according to Fajardo, have denied any participation in the disappearances.
The complaints stem from the disappearances of Marlon Baccay, James Baccay, Mark Joseph Velasco, Rondel Cristorum, Rowel Gomez, and John Claude Inonog on January 13 at the Manila Arena.
Six cases involving missing “sabungeros” are being investigated by the CIDG.
CIDG to files cases vs. 6 persons involved in missing sabungeros case
Authorities are still looking for the mastermind behind the sabungeros’ disappearance or kidnapping, according to Fajardo.
Last week, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) expressed reservations about the Senate’s decision to suspend the licenses of “e-sabong” companies amid disappearances of cockfight players, citing billions of pesos in lost revenue and the possibility of legal action from stakeholders.
PAGCOR chairperson Andrea Domingo said during the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs’ second hearing on the cases of missing “sabungeros” that while they want to solve the case, suspending e-sabong is not an “easy thing to do because it has a very strong effect on revenue generation.”
Domingo said the average monthly revenue from e-sabong will be roughly P400 million from May to December 2021. Since January of this year, she claims it has increased to P640 million every month.
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