PNP receiving info on possible sightings of Bantag, says spox

The Philippine National Police (PNP) said Wednesday it has received information on possible sightings of former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag amid the arrest warrant issued against him.

At a press briefing, PNP spokesperson Police Brigadier General Jean Fajardo said she discussed some developments regarding the manhunt for Bantag with Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Police Brigadier General Nicolas Torre III on Tuesday.

“Kausap ko lang po kahapon si General Torre and I asked him personally ano pa yung mga development sa efforts nila. There are some reports that reached our office the possible sightings nga po ni [former BuCor director general] Bantag,”

(I was just talking to General Torre yesterday and I asked him personally what are the developments in their efforts. There are some reports that reached our office about the possible sightings of former BuCor director genera Bantag.)

“But without giving too much details, ay hindi po ito tumitigil ang ating tracker teams. Ang atin naming mga efforts ay being reported kay Chief PNP and even our [Secretary of Interior and Local Government],” she added.

(But without giving too many details, our tracker teams are not stopping. Our efforts are being reported to the Chief PNP and even our Secretary of Interior and Local Government.)

Fajardo said the PNP believes that Bantag is still “somewhere up north.”

On Tuesday, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla expressed confidence that Bantag would be found soon.

'Wala pa [None yet]. 'We know where he is but we have not found him yet. But we will find him soon, pretty soon, 'yun lang 'yun...[that's all],'' Remulla said.

Bantag remains at large despite an outstanding warrant for his arrest over the alleged murder of broadcaster Percy Lapid.

In June of last year, the Court of Appeals dismissed Bantag's petition for certiorari assailing the November 2023 order of the Las Piñas Regional Trial Court-Branch 254 that denied his motion to quash information and warrant of arrest, as well as the court's order that denied his motion for reconsideration.

In his petition for certiorari, Bantag argued that the Department of Justice (DOJ) did not have the authority to file the information of murder against him and claimed that the court has no jurisdiction over the crime as it falls within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan since he was the ex-BuCor chief.

The Department of Justice had filed murder charges against Bantag and former deputy security officer Ricardo Zulueta with the Las Piñas court in relation to Lapid's killing.

Lapid, whose real name is Percy Mabasa, was shot dead in Las Piñas City on Oct. 3, 2022. Bantag has denied the allegations against him, claiming they were all "fabricated."

The DOJ previously said a cash reward of P2 million would be given for information on the whereabouts of Bantag while P1 million would have been given for Zulueta. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News