BI on the lookout for Julian Ongpin —Morente

The Department of Justice has ordered the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to be on the lookout for Julian Ongpin, who was tagged as a person of interest in the death of artist Bree Jonson.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said Wednesday that they received a memorandum from the DOJ ordering Ongpin’s inclusion in the Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order (ILBO) database, allowing the bureau to monitor the itineraries of his flight, travel, or whereabouts should he attempt to leave the country.

“His name has been included in our derogatory database, and we are monitoring his border movement,” Morente said. 

“All immigration officers nationwide in both airports and seaports have been instructed to closely monitor his travel and to prudently verify if he has an existing warrant of arrest, if encountered,” he added.

Jonson was found lifeless inside a resort room in San Juan, La Union on September 18. She was with Ongpin

The younger Ongpin is facing a complaint for possession of dangerous drugs after police recovered cocaine from the resort room.

However, he was temporarily released pending the preliminary investigation by the local prosecutor into the complaint.

The initial findings of the autopsy on Jonson show that the cause of her death was asphyxia, Police Regional Office 1 chief Emmanuel Peralta said Wednesday. He also said Jonson tested positive for cocaine use.

Police, however, are still waiting for the results of the histopathological examination.

Jonson’s mother, Sally, earlier denied that her daughter died of suicide, as claimed by Ongpin. —LBG, GMA News