DOJ: 2 respondents in Peter Lim, Kerwin Espinosa drug case killed

Two respondents in the illegal drug trading charges that included alleged drug lords Peter Lim and Kerwin Espinosa were killed in separate incidents, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has learned.

Max Miro, right-hand man of self-confessed drug lord Espinosa, was killed by policemen in Barangay Bantigue, Ormoc City on March 10 after he resisted arrest.

Nelson “Jun” Pepito, meanwhile, was killed by two unidentified motorcycle riding-in-tandem gunmen along Sitio Manga, Barangay Seguinon in Albuera, Leyte on Dec. 10, 2017.

Albuera is the hometown of Kerwin. His father, Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., was also linked to the illegal drug trade and was killed inside the Leyte provincial jail in Babay City on Nov. 5, 2016 in an alleged shootout with policemen.

Miro and Pepito were issued subpoenas and were supposed to appear before another preliminary investigation into the criminal charges filed against them.

In the preliminary investigation, the Philippine National Police – Criminal Investigation Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) as well as the respondents were allowed to submit additional pieces of evidence to support their respective positions.

The new probe was launched after the DOJ came under fire when it dismissed the “weak” drug charges filed by the PNP-CIDG against respondents Lim, Espinosa, Miro, Pepito, Lovely Impal, Ruel Malindangan and several others known only by their aliases.

Lim’s spokesperson Jun Fuentes refused to issue any statement regarding the death of Miro and Pepito, saying Lim has nothing to say on the matter since it only happened that the two were Lim’s co-acccused and that the Cebu businessman did not personally know them.

In July 2017, the CIDG’s Major Crimes Investigation Unit filed a case against the respondents for alleged conspiracy to commit the “sale, trading, administration, dispensation, delivery, distribution and transportation of dangerous drugs and/or controlled precursors and essential chemicals.”

The criminal conspiracy, the CIDG said, was continuously existing in various places in Makati City, as well as in Central and Eastern Visayas from February 2013 to August 2015, at the very least.