On the eve of the funeral of noted lawyer Noel Archival, the head of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) yesterday welcomed the idea to put up a cash reward to be given to anyone who could provide information that could lead to the capture of his assailants.
“A cash reward to witnesses can really help in the investigation. I believe it can influence anybody who has an idea about the crime to come out in the open and help us,” said NBI regional director Antonio Pagatpat.
Archival’s remains will be buried today at the Angelicum Garden of Angels in Mandaue City after the 11 a.m. requiem mass at the San Isidro Parish in Talamban, Cebu City.
Pagatpat said two teams from the NBI have started gathering clues on Archival’s killing.
Archival, 52, was killed instantly after gunmen raked his Ford Escape SUV with automatic gunfire last Feb. 19 in Dalaguete town while he and his aides were on their way to Cebu City. Two of his aides were also killed while another survived.
Pagatpat, nonetheless, remained tight-lipped on developments in their ongoing investigation.
“The gunmen were well-funded considering the logistics used in the execution of the crime. Consider the vehicles used as well as the number of assailants. The manner of execution was organized,” he said.
“As of now, I would rather say that we’re keeping the information close to our chest so that the investigation won’t be prejudiced. Please give us time,” he added.
NBI supervising agents Rennan Augustus Oliva and Jose Ermie Monsanto—both of whom served as godfathers of Archival’s youngest child—were tasked to lead the investigation.
Pagatpat advised the two NBI agents to closely coordinate with the police in the conduct of the investigation.
“We have to make sure that the NBI and the police will have the same suspects. Of course, we’re just after the same group of persons who killed Atty. Archival and his companions. It won’t be good for both agencies if we’ll have different sets of suspects,” he said.
He said witnesses need not fear for their safety since they will be placed under the Witness Protection Program of the Department of Justice.
Police said they are validating the identities of the suspects based on facial composites as described by witnesses, including Paolo Cortes, the lone survivor of the ambush.
Supt. Rodolfo Albotra, chief of the Provincial Intelligence Branch, said they are withholding the disclosure of the identity of the suspects in the police sketches pending validation by Task Force Archival investigators.
“They are subject for validation kay amo pang gitan-aw ang ilang possible involvement,” he said.
The task force is also looking for more witnesses who could shed light on the crime.
“We are digging (for) more possible motives and rest assured nga tan-awn namo tanan,” Albotra said.
The local chapter of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines meanwhile, frowned on the idea of offering cash rewards to draw out witnesses and more information on Archival’s killing.
“(With or without the reward system), any individual who witnessed a crime has the social, moral, and legal responsibility to come out in the open and testify,” said Mae Elaine Bathan, president of the IBP Cebu City chapter.
She added that giving cash rewards to witnesses can help investigators although it should not be made common practice.
Democrito Barcenas, chairman of the Free Legal Assistance Group (Flag) in Central Visayas, expressed sorrow over Archival’s death.
“Flag condemns the brutal murder of brother lawyer Noel Archival. It was an assault on the rule of law in our system of criminal justice. At the same time, Flag lawyers exhort the police to conduct a speedy investigation of the crime without resorting to having fall guys to please the public,” said Barcenas in a message sent to CDN.
Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.
