Central Visayas police forms ‘Task Group Casiban’

A SPECIAL investigation task group (SITG) has been created by the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 to dig deeper into the death of PO2 Ryan Casiban.

Senior Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, deputy regional director for operations, said the regional office is integrating all efforts being done by investigators from different units.

“We created the SITG aron mapalapdan nato atong imbestigasyon (to widen the investigation),” he said.

The task group, which started its case conference yesterday, is mainly composed of Cebu Provincial Police Office, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) 7, Cordova Police Station, Lapu-Lapu City Police Office, Regional Crime Laboratory Office 7 and PRO 7.

The investigating body is headed by deputy provincial director for operations Supt. Anthony Bagarinao and assisted by CIDG 7 Director Senior Supt. Marlon Tayaba.

Lawas, who also supervises the task group, said that they are still facing a blank wall as to the motive of Casiban’s death.

Part of the investigation is the background check of Casiban, particularly in determining if he had received threats in the past. The officer was assigned at Cordova Police Station in March 2007.

Casiban’s wife, Chona, said her husband was not an illegal drug user.

“Unang una, we will try to find out who killed PO2 Casiban, kon gipatay man siya. Kay ang initial nga milutaw man nga nag-suicide, but we would like to find out,” he said.

PRO 7 Director Chief Supt. Noli Taliño, quoted in an earlier report, said they are not yet ruling Casiban’s death as a suicide.

Police Director General Ronald dela Rosa ordered the PRO 7 to investigate Casiban’s death, after the latter wrote the names of retired deputy director general Marcelo Garbo and Daanbantayan Mayor Vicente Loot in a police blotter, connecting them to a drug syndicate.

Casiban also mentioned the name of Atan Tajanlangit to the former Cordova police chief Zosimo Jabas Jr.

PO2 Dindo Tajanlangit, who is also known to his friends as Atan, submitted an affidavit to the CPPO, saying his only connection with Casiban was when he asked him to look after the motorbanca used by Loot and Garbo in their diving activities and in joining the fluvial parade on Sinulog.

Tajanlangit, who believed that the boat was owned by Garbo, will be included in the investigation.

The investigators will also try to find the last officer whom Casiban talked with in person, so they will know what was his problems.