THE Davao City Prosecutor's Office has indicted self-confessed Davao Death Squad (DDS) member Edgar Matobato for frustrated murder over his alleged attempt to kill retired Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Southern Mindanao adjudicator Abeto Salcedo Jr. in 2014.
In a press conference Thursday, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said the case against Matobato has already been filed in Digos City Regional Trial Court, Davao del Sur.
The Justice Secretary did not give further details of the case.
On September 23, 2016, a frustrated murder complaint was filed against Matobato, days after he appeared in a Senate investigation on the spate of killings in the country. During the probe, Matobato directly linked President Rodrigo Duterte to the DDS.
Complainant Salcedo said he recognized Matobato as the gunman who shot him at close range on October 24, 2014 while he was emerging from the DAR provincial office in Digos City.
Salcedo in his previous interviews said he could not be mistaken as he and Matobato during the 2014 was "only separated by his car's window."
Matobato said he had no involvement in the attempted murder of Salcedo as was under the Witness Protection Program during that time. (Sunnex)