Philippine embassy aware of Zaldy Co in France but can't investigate, arrest him

The Philippine Embassy in Paris has reason to believe Zaldy Co is in France and supposedly has properties in the country, but may not conduct surveillance or arrest him, Ambassador to France Eduardo de Vega said.

De Vega made the remark after Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro said that a highly-regarded source told the department that Co was in France, where he is reportedly seeking asylum.

“Although, as the Secretary said, we have strong reason to believe he’s here. Of course, there are ideas as to his property here, but he’s not been sighted there either,” De Vega told GMA News.

However, he said there has been no official confirmation that Co has actually been sighted in the country.

The ambassador stressed that Philippine officials cannot simply conduct their own investigation or surveillance in France, even on properties allegedly connected to Co, as this would violate French sovereignty and local laws.

“We cannot act like we were private investigators here because that would be breaking the rules or better put, we would be infringing on the sovereignty of France,” De Vega said, adding that police detective work belonged to the French authorities.

“And officially, of course, the French will never confirm because there are privacy laws,” he added.

De Vega also said the embassy, as well as members of the Filipino community in France, have no authority to arrest Co even if he is spotted by embassy officials or by the Filipino community.

“Although, may warrant of arrest, he’s not in the Philippines. He’s in France. So, Philippine laws don’t apply here. So, it has to be done through the host government, maybe through Interpol,” De Vega said. 

“Pero nga may amnesty request. That is the word, no? So, right now, even if he shows up somewhere, and I doubt very much that he would show up at the embassy. But even if he shows up at the embassy, we can’t just simply arrest him,” he added. –NB, GMA News