The National Bureau of Investigation in Southern Mindanao Region, a coordinating member of Special Investigation Task Group Acido, has filed murder charges against five persons of interest who may have been involved in the killing of a prosecutor in Mati City last month.
According to Samuel Balisi, NBI’s agent-in-charge, they have received instructions from NBI Region 11 director Atty. Dante Guiran to investigate Rolando Acido’s murder case in Mati shortly after the fiscal was shot to death.
“We gathered several pieces of evidences that led to the murder case of Fiscal Acido in our investigation,” Balisi told reporters in a press briefing Wednesday.
NBI special investigator Elias Leano, who was also around in the press briefing, revealed that the suspects were engaged in extortion, illegal mining, and gun for hire and that these are big political personalities in Davao Oriental.
Leano added that Fiscal Acido was handling a sensitive case involving one of the suspects before he was shot dead.
It can be recalled that Fiscal Rolando Acido was shot dead by a riding in tandem outside Mati City Hall of Justice on October 26.
Balisi added that one of the witnesses, which he refused to divulge, filed a “very detailed” affidavit which “substantiated to one of the suspects” in the killing.
He quoted the affidavit filed by the witness that Acido allegedly received death threats from one of the suspects before the fiscal was shot and reportedly used big names in politics in the province of Davao Oriental.
Balisi also reported that while he was treated at the hospital before he died, that it was one of the suspect’s bodyguard who shot him.
Meanwhile, PCI Hector Amancia, Provincial Officer of Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) – Davao Oriental said both NBI and PNP still continues to follow the five persons of interest in the killing of the prosecutor.
Amancia said they already have the lead as to where the suspects are located and that the accused have “degrees of participation” in the killing of Acido.
However, they cannot divulge the names of personalities yet.
“We do not want to put at risk the lives of the four witnesses,” Amancia said.
