NATIONAL Bureau of Investigation (NBI) spokesperson Ferdinand Lavin has confirmed that the police allegedly involved in the abduction of a South Korean businessman in October last year is now under the custody of the NBI.
According to Lavin, SPO3 Ricky Sta. Isabel surrendered to the NBI on Monday morning following Philippe National Police (PNP) Director General Ronald Dela Rosa's manhunt order against the inactive cop.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre on Monday said Sta. Isabel sought "voluntary protective custody" from the NBI.
Sta. Isabel is accused of being involved in the disappearance of South Korean businessman Jee Ick-joo.
Jee and his house help Marisa Dawis were abducted in his home in Angeles city by a group of eight individuals posing as cops.
The kidnapping and the serious illegal detention charges filed by the PNP Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) against Sta. Isabel and seven others are now pending before the Department of Justice.
The cases have so far undergone three preliminary investigations, previously under the sala of Assistant State Prosecutor Hjalmar Quintana and now under Prosecution Attorney Loverhette Jeffrey Villordon after Quintana inhibited.
Choi Kyung-jin, wife of Ick-joo, has already offered P100,000 reward to any person who can give information on the whereabouts of her husband. (SunStar Philippines)