Atong Ang, others face murder, serious illegal detention complaints over missing ‘sabungeros’ case
Metro Manila, Philippines - At least 30 families on Friday, Aug. 1, filed murder and serious illegal detention complaints against business tycoon Atong Ang and others over the disappearance of missing cockfighting enthusiasts or “sabungeros.”
Two family members shared this information to the media at the Department of Justice (DOJ) in Manila where the complaints were filed.
In a chance interview, Charlene Lasco, relative of missing sabungero Ricardo, said their group filed complaints against Ang, Eric dela Rosa, Caroline Cruz, and some police officers.
“Hiling namin sa kanila ay masusing pag-aralan para talagang magkaroon ng probable cause sa gayon magkabasis para maisyuhan ng warrant of arrest sa lalong madaling panahon,” Lasco said.
[Translation: We hope they’ll review the case well so there can be probable cause and basis for an arrest warrant immediately.]
Ryan Bautista, relative of missing sabungero Michael, said the families are happy to finally take the case to court.
In a press briefing, Justice Secretary Remulla did not name the respondents, saying there are some John and Jane Does as well.
“Meron namang [there’s a] witness who testifies to the fact that person was involved in the commission of these crimes or the head of the criminal organization,” he said when asked if the complaint was filed against Ang and other personalities.
He said the complaint included the affidavit of whistleblower Julie Dondon Patidongan, as well as statements from his brother Elakim, who was taken into police custody after he was tagged as a missing link in the case.
“Ang reliability ng kanyang [The reliability of his] testimony is full truth in many ways because his picture appears in the return of the cyber warrant, granted by the court na isang [of an] ATM withdrawal, ATM ng isang [of a] sabungero. Kaya ang tingin namin na reliable talaga [That’s why we believe it is really reliable]. It also proves na [that] Totoy or Dondon was saying the right thing,” said Remulla, pertaining to Elakim’s statement.
Dondon earlier named Ang as the mastermind in the disappearance of “sabungeros” - a case that has stayed unresolved since 2021.
The whistleblower previously claimed that the remains of the cockfighting enthusiasts were dumped in Taal Lake in Batangas, triggering search and deep dive operations since last month.
Meanwhile, Remulla dismissed police statements that DNA profiles could not be extracted from the human bones from Taal.
“Porke ba sa isang buto eh wala e, ilang daang buto na nakukuha? ‘Di pwede. [Even if a bone has no profile, how many bones have been retrieved so far? That can’t be] It’s premature to say anything of that nature,” he said.
