The Department of Justice on revealed on Wednesday that suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag should file a counter-affidavit for all the allegations against him for the murder of broadcaster Percy Lapid and subsequent death of middleman Cristito Villamor by 8 February.
It stressed that failure on Bantag’s part to file his affidavit would leave the panel of prosecutors handling the preliminary investigation no other recourse but to submit the case for resolution without his side.
The next schedule of preliminary investigation is set on 8 February 2023 for the submission of counter-affidavits of the respondents.
The said that failure to submit counter-affidavits will constrain it to submit the case for resolution, given the limited period for the conduct of preliminary investigation under the Rules of Court and Revised Manual for Prosecutors, 2017 Edition.
The other day, the DoJ dismissed for lack of merit Bantag’s motion for reconsideration on a previous resolution denying his motion to inhibit the prosecutors handling his two murder complaints.
The DoJ has been conducting preliminary investigation into the two murder complaints filed against Bantag in connection with the sensational murders of Lapid and Villamor.
The kill order was allegedly relayed by Villamor from the National Bilibid Prison to self-confessed gunman Joel Escorial.