News Roundup 01 August 2024
Aug 01, 2024 • 4 min Read
DOJ won’t bar arrest warrants vs suspects in ICC ‘drug war’ case | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government will not block any arrest warrants that the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) may issue concerning the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) “drug war” case, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said.
Remulla explained on Thursday that while the Philippines is no longer a member of the ICC, it remains a part of Interpol, which facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime control.
“We are not in the business of blocking any movement at Interpol,” the DOJ chief replied when asked what the government will do if Interpol issues arrest warrants on suspects in the ICC drug war case.
“We will study the possibilities of the implications of dealing with Interpol and its partner, but we are not in the business of blocking Interpol’s job, which is to fight international crime,” he added.
Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Oscar Albayalde, former Criminal Investigation and Detection Group chief Romeo Caramat Jr., former National Police Commission commissioner Edilberto Leonardo, and former PNP Intelligence Officer Eleazar Mata have been tagged as suspects by the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC, which investigates the Duterte administration’s brutal anti-drug campaign.
Full Story at: DOJ won’t bar arrest warrants vs suspects in ICC ‘drug war’ case (inquirer.net)
DOJ chief on VP Duterte’s reduced security: Not a bad matter | INQUIRER.NET – MANILA, Philippines — It is not a “bad matter” to remove some of Vice President Sara Duterte’s security personnel, according to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla.
This was his response when asked for a comment on Duterte’s appeal for protection for her family, following the recall of 75 police officers from her personal protection team.
“There were 400 security personnel assigned to her. There’s still about 320 security personnel assigned to her,” Remulla said at a Kapisahan session with reporters on Thursday.
“I don’t think it’s a bad matter to withdraw some of the personnel,” he added.
Remulla also pointed out that Duterte has more security personnel than President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“She still has [over] 300 bodyguards, which is bigger than the president’s security,” the Department of Justice chief said.
Full Story at: DOJ chief on VP Duterte’s reduced security: Not a bad matter (inquirer.net)
Alice Guo and Guo Hua Ping’s fingerprints match, says Comelec | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — The fingerprints of suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo and Chinese national “Guo Hua Ping” match, according to the Commission on Elections’ panel investigating the embattled mayor.
Comelec chairperson George Garcia Thursday said that the panel has found sufficient basis to launch a motu proprio investigation on Guo in preparation for the filing of an election-related offense case, specifically her alleged misrepresentation in her certificate of candidacy.
He said the poll body’s fact-finding team looked at various fingerprint sources to arrive at its findings.
This includes filed applications for voter registration, certificates of candidacy and documents from the National Bureau of Investigation.
Garcia expressed hope that the Comelec en banc could issue a resolution in relation to the case by early next week.
The Comelec chairperson earlier said that they can no longer initiate a disqualification case against Guo as she has already long been proclaimed and assumed office.
Full Story at: Alice Guo and Guo Hua Ping’s fingerprints match, says Comelec | Philstar.com
Interpol asked to track Bato dela Rosa, 4 ‘drug war’ cops, says Trillanes | PHILSTAR.COM – MANILA, Philippines — The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has asked Interpol to put out an alert on five former ranking police officials, including an incumbent senator, suspected to be involved in the Duterte administration’s deadly anti-narcotics campaign.
Antonio Trillanes IV, a former opposition senator who filed the case at the Hague-based court, said ICC prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan has pushed for the “blue notice” against Sen. Ronald dela Rosa and four others.
“Along with providing this document to the Philippine government, the ICC also made a request to Interpol to include these five individuals in the ‘blue notice’,” Trillanes said in Filipino on Wednesday in an ambush interview with reporters at the Department of Justice.
Trillanes was referring to the document from the ICC where Dela Rosa, former president Rodrigo Duterte’s chief of police and executor of the so-called drug war, is officially placed “under suspicion.”
Alongside Dela Rosa, the following were also named suspects for crimes against humanity over the thousands of Filipinos killed for alleged involvement in the drug trade:
- Oscar Albayalde, former chief of police
- Romero Caramat Jr., former chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group
- Edilberto Leonardo, former commissioner of the National Police Commission
- Eleazar Mata, former PNP chief intelligence officer
The five named suspects were first revealed by Trillanes on July 28. The document from the international tribunal state former officials of the Philippine National Police were responsible for the ordering of killings of drug suspects and “users” from 2011 to 2019.
Full Story at: Blue notice: Interpol asked to track Bato dela Rosa, 4 ‘drug war’ cops | Philstar.com
