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Ex-CA justice cries foul over CIDG's letter linking him to 2016 murder, says case is politically motivated
Ex-CA justice cries foul over CIDG's letter linking him to 2016 murder, says case is politically motivated
Retired Court of Appeals justice Vicente “Ching” Veloso cried foul over his inclusion in the list of the suspects in the killing of a barangay official in Tabangon town of Leyte in 2016.
Veloso’s name was included in the letter sent by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to the Department of Justice (DOJ) last week in relation to the death of Anthony Nuñez who was gunned down in a cockpit arena in Leyte.
In a statement, Veloso categorically denied any involvement in the murder, saying he was serving as a justice in the Court of Appeals at the time of the incident and had no connection to Nuñez or his family.
“If I indeed committed a crime, why wasn’t I included in the case that was filed immediately after the January 23, 2016 murder of one Anthony Nuñez? Why are they implicating me just now, nine years after?. I won’t gain anything if I have someone killed.” said Veloso.
Veloso served as a congressman of the 3rd District of Leyte and is now running for a congressional seat in another district of the province.
He described the accusations as an attempt to tarnish his reputation and discredit his candidacy in the upcoming elections.
The CIDG already filed a case before but was dismissed due to insufficient evidence but last year, the case was reopened and at the course of the probe, a witness identified as Richan Pernis surrendered and claimed that Veloso had a role in the killing of Nuñez.
Veloso, for his part, said that the case leveled against him is a retaliatory move after several people, including his political rivals, were charged for allegedly forcing Nuñez’s brother to testify against him.
Veloso also reacted to the complaint of the CIDG that was published in the Manila Bulletin that another witness supposedly admitted in August 2015 his participation in the killing of Nuñez.
“Furthermore, according to the CIDG as published by the Manila Bulletin, their witness supposedly admitted in August 2015 to his 'participation in the crime.' How could he admit to a crime that had not yet happened? Anthony was killed in January 2016,” said Veloso.
“This letter from the CIDG cannot be considered an official ‘complaint; because according to the Rules of Criminal Procedure, a complaint must be filed by the police in the area where the offense was committed or by an offended party,” he added.
Veloso said that he is not worried and intimidated by the complaint.
“The DOJ is an appellate court, meaning it reviews appeals from the prosecutors’ office. So, this letter from the CIDG to the DOJ will have to be referred to the Leyte Prosecutors Office. I believe they sent this to the DOJ only for publicity purposes,” he said.