Aguirre: NBI to continue carnapping, robbery probe on Jee Ick Joo slay

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said Friday the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) would not terminate its probe on the carnapping and robbery complaints filed by the widow of slain South Korean businessman Jee Ick Joo.

In a chance interview, Aguirre said the NBI is pursuing leads that could help in the investigation.

“Diniscuss sa NBI 'yan. They are not, more or less at this stage, [likely] na mag-withraw from the case kasi meron silang mga leads na dapat nilang i-pursue,” he said, without elaborating.

Jee's wife, Choi Kyung Jin, herself has requested President Rodrigo Duterte in a letter to keep the NBI's hands off the investigation following reports that some NBI officials might also be involved in the crime. 

She then informed NBI Director Dante Gierran that she was withdrawing the complaints pending before the NBI National Capital Region, whose head, Ricardo Diaz, was among the four officials relieved from their posts because of the incident.

"In this regard, I would like to request that instead of this joint NBI-PNP task force, the investigation be carried on by the PNP Anti-Kidnapping Group for the simple reason that I do not trust the NBI to carry out an impartial investigation," Choi said in her letter to the President dated February 3.

“Please Mr. President, while I appreciate the attention you have given to this case, I hope that it will really be resolved at the soonest possible time to allow us the closure we desperately need. I believe this can happen if the AKG will take over the investigation until its final resolution,” she added.

Choi also held out hope that the results of the NBI probe will be turned over to the PNP AKG.

Jee was abducted, along with his househelp, in his Angeles City home last October 18, by armed men allegedly pretending to be carrying out an anti-drug operation.

He was reportedly strangled to death inside the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame on the same day he was kidnapped, his cremated remains supposedly flushed down the toilet.

Authorities have earlier filed with the Angeles City trial court a separate case of kidnapping for ransom with homicide against the suspects, but the court granted the respondents' plea for a reinvestigation by the Department of Justice.

Among the police officers implicated in the kidnap-slay is Supt. Rafael Dumlao III, a former team leader of the defunct PNP Anti-Illegal Drugs Group.

Dumlao had claimed the PNP cannot destroy those behind the Jee kidnap-slay. — MDM, GMA News