NBI to tap Interpol for Royina Garma's return

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Jaime Santiago said Wednesday he would tap the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) for the return of retired police colonel Royina Garma to the Philippines.

"We will now coordinate with Interpol," Santiago said in a media briefing.

This came after a court issued an arrest warrant against Garma and others in connection with the death of Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Board Secretary Wesley Barayuga.

Santiago said Malaysia, Garma's destination from Manila on September 7, is cooperative with the Philippines.

"Kapag nalaman nila na mayroon nang warrant of arrest against her, maaaring arestuhin nila and then communicate with us na ito, nakuha na namin. Sunduin niyo na dito," he said.

(Once they learn that there is already a warrant of arrest against her, they may arrest her and then communicate with us that she has been caught. They can tell us to fetch her there.)

He advised Garma to return to the Philippines and face the charges against her.

Garma left for Malaysia as a tourist just a day after she returned to the Philippines from Los Angeles, California. Her short-lived homecoming came nearly 10 months after she was held by US authorities for a canceled visa.

Santiago said she told him that she would meet with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to give a statement. Former President Rodrigo Duterte is currently held under ICC custody in The Hague, Netherlands as he faces charges of crimes against humanity over his war on drugs.

During hearings of the House Quad Committee on the drug war, Garma claimed that Duterte asked her to look for an officer to implement the Davao model of the drug war on a national scale.

Garma said the Davao model referred to a "system involving payments and rewards."

Barayuga, meanwhile, was shot dead in Mandaluyong City in July 2020, while his driver sustained injuries.

Garma has denied allegations that she masterminded Barayuga's death. — VDV, GMA Integrated News