Davao City - The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) confirmed the existence of a mass grave for the victims of summary killings in Davao and reveals that there's more.

In a press release, the CHR said that based on the sworn statement of a former member of the Davao Death Squad (DDS), a group of suspected hired killers, the mass grave is found within the Gold Cup firing range in Ma-a, Davao City, which is owned by a retired policeman, Bienvenido Laud.

With this information, the commission bared that the Regional Trial Court Branch 34 of Manila immediately issued a search warrant last Friday authorizing the police to search search the area. The place was cordoned off by members of the Regional Mobile Group 11 and the searched started last Sunday.

The CHR also revealed that the burial site is around 50 meters from its entrance along Ma-a Diversion Road, this city, below a 75-degree slope with a narrow trail. During days of the search, the commission reported finding several bone fragments identified by Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) as human remains. Earlier reports revealed that less than ten bone fragments were already discovered.

The commission also bared further findings in another area near the firing range. "The search team while on its way to the burial site, chanced upon a creek with apparently man-made pit where their attention was called by an object which when checked appeared to be a human leg bone," it stated.

Through this, the CHR is considering on digging up the said area. "The place not being part of the search warrant was preserved and cordoned for security. For this, the team immediately endeavored to apply for a new search warrant at the regional trial court in Davao City," it said.

The CHR multi-sectoral task force, composed of the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of National Defense (DND), and Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), was set to arrive Friday (July 10) with the second search warrant for the commission's second set of diggings here.

However, the commission expressed disappointment over judges who allegedly appeared reluctant to conduct the summary proceedings. Though the presiding judges vowed to act on the application.

For his part, Laud is contemplating on filing a motion to quash the earlier search warrant. In an interview over GMA TV-5 news program, "Testigo," Laud's lawyer Victorio Advincula cited the grounds to counter the warrant. "The warrant was issued in Manila and not here. Also, the warrant bared the name of a policeman and not the witness. Third, the warrant was served to the caretaker and not on the owner," he said.

Nevertheless, the commission vowed to be relentless in its efforts to address extrajudicial killings in the city. "The CHR and the Philippine National Police (PNP) assure the public that this no-nonsense effort will continue without leaving any stone unturned," it stated.