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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Lawyer asks DOJ to subpoena 'withheld' affidavits in 'missing sabungeros' case

Lawyer asks DOJ to subpoena 'withheld' affidavits in 'missing sabungeros' case

Published Aug 17, 2025 04:40 pm
An inter-agency search and retrieval operation is conducted by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Philippine National Police's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), and Department of Justice (DOJ) at the Taal Lake in Talisay, Batangas on July 10, 2025 to locate the remains of 34 missing sabungeros believed to have been killed and dumped in the lake. (Santi San Juan / MANILA BULLETIN)
An inter-agency search and retrieval operation is conducted by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Philippine National Police's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), and Department of Justice (DOJ) at the Taal Lake in Talisay, Batangas on July 10, 2025 to locate the remains of 34 missing sabungeros believed to have been killed and dumped in the lake. (Santi San Juan / MANILA BULLETIN)
The camp of one of the policemen tagged in the case of “missing sabungeros” asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to subpoena the affidavits allegedly being withheld by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).
Lawyer Bernard Vitriolo, legal counsel of Police Senior Master Sgt. Joey Encarnacion, said the affidavits of the witnesses for the policemen could have helped his client present a fair defense to the investigators of the case.
In a three-page letter addressed to Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon, Vitriolo said the “undue suppression of these affidavits would also cause my client undue injury.”
"May I request your office to issue a subpoena duces tecum to the CIDG and for that office to turn over to your office the aforementioned relevant affidavits and for them to be considered in the evaluation of evidence towards a prima facie case against those who might be criminally responsible," the letter, dated Aug. 15 read.
The affidavits were submitted by 12 witnesses to the CIDG at the height of the investigation of the missing sabungeros.
In a press briefing, CIDG director Brig. Gen. Christopher Abrahano confirmed receiving the affidavits on July 11, but emphasized that they could not act on it due to procedural lapses.
“We acknowledge the receipt of the documents that were brought here on July 11… but it begs the questions on the veracity of the statements since it is not our police investigators who prepared them,” Abrahano said.
But Abrahano said those who submitted the affidavits can still file them to the DOJ anytime
Vitriolo, however, emphasized that the affidavits were executed by individuals claiming to know details of the case, adding that the non-inclusion of the affidavits in the ongoing DOJ evaluation could substantially alter the outcome of the investigation.
Vitriolo’s client, Encarnacion, was among the 12 policemen linked by Julie Patidongan to the case of the missing sabungeros. The policemen are now preventively suspended for 90 days.
The camp of Encarnacion, however, said that it was Patidongan who should explain on the case.
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