The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has joined the probe on the death of an Adamson University (AdU) student who was believed to be a hazing victim, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Wednesday, March 1.
“The Secretary (Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla) has already asked NBI to conduct a parallel probe into the death of John Matthew T. Salilig,” DOJ Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV said.
Remulla is currently in Geneva, Switzerland for the 52nd Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
“We hope to shed light on this issue on the death of Salilig,” a 24-year- old engineering student who was a native of Zamboanga, Clavano said.
“The Department condemns any violation of Republic Act No. 11053 or the Anti-Hazing Law,” he said.
In the meantime, he said, the DOJ “will await any case that will be filed before our prosecutors.”
“Rest assured, any forthcoming case will undergo diligent evaluation,” he said.
“If probable cause with reasonable certainty of conviction is found, we will prosecute the case until the perpetrators of this crime are finally brought to justice,” he added.
Salilig has been reported missing since Feb. 18 after he was last since at a bus terminal. He was believed to have died while allegedly undergoing hazing by members of the Tau Gama Phi fraternity.
On Feb. 28, authorities found the body of Salilig in a vacant lot at the back of a subdivision in Barangay Malagasang I-G in Imus, Cavite.