De Lima: Evidence vs Bar exam blast suspect 'strong'
But VP Binay says his fraternity brother is innocent
MANILA, Philippines - Thirty-one days after the post-2010 Bar examinations blast along Taft Avenue, Manila, the suspected grenade-thrower was turned over by the council of elders of the Alpha Phi Omega (APO) fraternity on Wednesday morning to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Anthony Leal Nepomuceno, a call center agent and member of APO fraternity, was brought to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for questioning, following a commitment made by Vice-president Jejomar Binay to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.
De Lima contacted the Vice-president, who is also a member of the APO fraternity, yesterday and informed him that Nepomuceno was being tagged by eye witnesses as the grenade-thrower and asked if he could help bring in the suspect.
Binay then discussed the matter with his fraternity's council of elders, who decided to present Nepomuceno to de Lima.
In a press conference, de Lima clarified that presenting Nepomuceno to the DOJ and NBI could not be technically or legally be called a surrender.
"Loosely speaking, that was a surrender. But not legally speaking, kasi walang warrant, walang manhunt on the basis of a warrant of arrest," de Lima said.
The justice chief also said the matter could not be called a warrantless arrest because Nepomuceno was not caught in the act of committing a crime.
De Lima said Nepomuceno could not also be presented to the media because he is protected by constitutional rights.
"The investigation will go through the correct process as far as statutory rights are concerned. In fact, part of his human rights na hindi muna ipa-parade sa media. That is violative of human rights and constitutional presumption of his innocence. I told Vice-president Binay and ibang elders of APO na we will respect the suspect's rights, and therefore, he will be treated properly within the bounds of law and correct process ," de Lima clarified.
The justice chief, however, said that evidence gathered by the NBI against Nepomuceno is strong, and she expects the filing of charges to happen anytime soon.
"The claim of this guy is that he is allegedly innocent, but the NBI's evidence saying it was him is strong enough. There are witnesses pointing to him," de Lima said.
VP Binay claims 'brod' is innocent
In a separate interview with Vice-President Jejomar Binay at the NBI headquarters in Manila, Binay said he believes Nepomuceno is innocent.
"Kami, humarap dito bilang pagtugon. Base sa aming pagtatanong, sa tingin ko, walang kasalanan," Binay said.
The vice-president, who joined the APO fraternity in 1960, however, clarified that he is leaving the investigation up to the NBI.
"Ayaw namin makialam sa procedure dito ha. Lahat ng mangyayari, NBI yun... Basta kami, pag napagbibintangan, nilalabas namin," Binay said.
The Vice-President also said that Nepomuceno explained he did not present himself to authorities sooner because of fear.
"Yung tao, nung sinasabi napagbibintangan, natatakot na. Sabi namin, huwag ka matakot dahil yung karapatan mo sa ilalim ng Saligang Batas poprotektahan," Binay said.
Binay clarified APO was not surrendering Nepomuceno because no charges have been filed against him in court and therefore submitting him to the process of the NBI is only part of the bureau's ongoing investigation into the post-bar exams blast.
The DOJ, meantime, said Nepomuceno could not be detained just yet, because no formal charges have been filed against him.
De Lima said APO's council of elders and Nepomuceno's lawyers have committed to make him available anytime for the investigation and the preliminary investigation that will ensue once the proper information are filed before the court.
Charges against the suspect could range from frustrated murder to multiple physical injuries.
No sacred cows
De Lima gave the assurance that Nepomuceno will be treated fairly, and that whoever is responsible, regardless of affiliation, will be brought to the bar of justice.
"Wala kami sasantuhin. Wala kami sinasanto. Mananagot ang dapat managot. It doesn't matter to us kung sino ang members ng fraternity na yan," the justice chief said.
Case not closed
The justice department, however, refuses to consider the case closed since no charges have been filed yet in court.
Two other suspects, who supposedly aided the grenade-thrower to escape a mauling incident that ensued following the blast, remain at-large.