Amid Search Ops in Taal Lake, DOJ Chief Remulla Says Suspected Human Ribs Found
DOJ CHIEF – Justice Secretary Boying Remulla spoke on the witnesses and the whistleblower of the case of the missing sabungeros amid the search operations of the authorities in Taal Lake.
A whistleblower recently got the authorities investigating in Taal Lake after his claim that around 100 cockfighting enthusiasts were allegedly thrown in Taal Lake. According to alias Totoy, those sabungeros allegedly went through a terrible fate before they were thrown in the body of water.
The whistleblower tagged Chinese-Filipino businessman Atong Ang and former actress Gretchen Barretto in the case of the missing sabungeros. Atong Ang was quick to deny the accusation and claimed his accuser is allegedly after money. According to him, he will file complaint against alias Totoy.
Gretchen Barretto also denied her alleged involvement in the missing sabungeros case. She also denied the claim that she allegedly agreed in a meeting to deal with the cheating cockfighting enthusiasts. The whistleblower claimed that the former actress is allegedly one of the members of the so-called ‘Alpha Team’ and she’s always with Ang.
Prior to the current allegations, Gretchen is known as a close associate of Ang in his e-sabong business which had its peak during the pandemic. They were previously romantically-linked but the Chinese-Filipino businessman denied having an affair with the long-time partner of business giant Tony Boy Cojuangco.
DOJ chief Boying Remulla previously confirmed that not only Atong Ang but also Gretchen Barretto is now considered a suspect in the case of the missing sabungeros. The authorities immediately started search operations in Taal Lake.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Police General Nicolas Torre III previously confirmed that human bones were found in Taal Lake. Recently, DOJ chief Boying Remulla claimed that suspected human ribs were found in the area that was pointed out by the witnesses as well as alias Totoy.
The witnesses are allegedly the ones who were tasked to dispose the bodies as per the whistleblower. Based on a report on Inquirer, DOJ chief Boying Remulla backed the reliability of the witnesses in the case of the missing sabungeros.
“When the guide was asked where to go, they pointed out the direction to search. And true enough, when they dived there, they hit the spot. So, the witnesses we spoke with are actually very reliable,” Remulla expressed.
Based on the report, DOJ chief Boying Remulla admitted that alias Totoy is not their sole source of information in the investigation of the case of the missing cockfighting enthusiasts. However, he declined to disclose how many witnesses does the authority have.
However, currently, alias Totoy has yet to file a formal criminal complaint or affidavit to the justice department. Recently, there was an attempt to link the case of the missing sabungeros with the Duterte drug war which former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte had a reaction amid his detention under the ICC (International Criminal Court).