NBI reinforces Bacolod office due to threats

LAWYER Ferdinand Lavin, head of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Bacolod, revealed on Thursday that, because of threats against him and the entire NBI-Bacolod personnel, the NBI-National Office sent reinforcement here.

Lavin said that a dozen agents from NBI-Manila have been here since last month.

He said that the threats were conveyed to him by a close friend. He was threatened to be relieved from his assignment here, that he may be harmed or ambushed and that the NBI-Bacolod Office may be bombed or torched.

However, Lavin said that based on their assessment, it was initially found out that the said threats are not that serious.

The threats he said could be related to the assassination of the late Judge Henry Arles of the Kabankalan Regional Trial Court.

Lavin bared that the reinforcement from NBI-Manila could be recalled anytime, as they are only temporary here.

He also emphasized that they cannot be cowed by such threats and that they have to regularly perform their duties to maintain peace in the province.

Lavin meanwhile reiterated that their recommendation for the filing of the murder case against the alleged suspects on the killing of Arles has nothing to do with politics.

He said that when they started to conduct parallel investigation on the Arles case, the names of the officials has not yet surfaced. He said that the filing of the case was referred to by NBI deputy director Virgilio Mendez and that their findings were the ones which were acceptable to the kin of the late Judge Arles.

"The NBI is just a nominal complainant in the Arles case, as the primary complainants are the Arles kin," he said.

The murder case was filed before the Department of Justice (DOJ) by Arles’s son Philip and brother- in law Atty. Frank Britanico.

The subpoena was reportedly released by the DOJ against the alleged suspects Jessie Daguia, Vincent Capunong, Eddie Fortunado, Gerald Tabujara, Marvin Salve, Eman Medez and Mayor John Paul Alvarez of Ilog.

As of this writing, Rep. Mercedes Alvarez (6th District) said that his brother, Mayor Alvarez, has not yet received any subpoena from the DOJ. (Teresa D. Ellera)