Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla said he will ask the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to probe the “misbehavior” of the lawyer of one of the detained suspects in the March 4, 2023 killings of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel R. Degamo and nine other persons. Remulla told journalists he signed the letter on Wednesday, June 14, for transmittal to the IBP on the same day for a probe on lawyer Danny Villanueva. “We’re reporting to them a case of misbehavior,” Remulla said. He said the Villanueva violated the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA) when the lawyer filed before the Manila regional trial court (RTC) a petition for habeas corpus seeking the release from government custody of the family members of detained suspect Jhudiel R. Rivero. “I am not threatening anybody. It has to be done so that lawyers will not trifle with the judicial processes or with the processes of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in preliminary investigation,” he pointed out. He said that Villanueva already knew that Rivero’s family already left the Witness Protection Program of the DOJ and despite this, he still filed the habeas corpus petition and even sought a hearing for it. “They keep crying out about everything but they are trying to delay all the cases,” he said. At the same time, Remulla said that Vilanueva did not even sign the petition which was only signed only by Rivero. “Ibig sabihin na umiiwas lang siya na siya ay sabihan na alam niya na bale wala na ‘yung kaso kasi na-release na ‘yung tao (This means the lawyer is avoiding not to be told that the case is worthless because the family has been released),” he stressed. Commenting on Remulla’s action, Villanueva said: “It’s harassment plain and simple.” Villanueva said that before the habeas corpus petition was filed, appeals were made to Remulla for the release of Rivero’s wife, Queenie, and their two sons. “But he (Remulla) did not do it, so we assisted Mr. Jhudiel Rivero to file the petition,” he said. “The filing of petition is a right enshrined in the Constitution. To avail and exercise said right is certainly not trifling with judicial process,” he added. He lamented that what was wrong was for the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), upon the instruction of Remulla, “to arbitrarily arrest and detain innocent individuals upon the pretext that they requested to be placed under WPP.” “We have the sworn statements of Rivero’s family that they did not freely go with the NBI but that they were misled into believing that Jhudiel requested NBI to take custody of his family,” he also said.