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MANILA – The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Tuesday said the killing of Albuera, Leyte mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. inside a sub-provincial jail in Leyte was a “rubout” that could be part of a much bigger conspiracy.
“After conducting an exhaustive investigation of the incidents surrounding the killing of mayor Espinosa and Yap, the NBI concluded that the testimonies of several witnesses had disputed the claim of an alleged shootout between the [Criminal Investigation and Detection Group] operatives and inmates mayor Espinosa and Raul Yap but a ‘rubout,'” the NBI said in a statement on Tuesday.
The bureau issued the statement after revealing that it has filed multiple criminal charges against Superintendent Marvin Marcos and police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) members in Region 8 for the death of Espinosa.
Based on the evidence, the NBI said “it is patently clear that the acts of the CIDG 8 operatives showed a community of purpose or an implied conspiracy.”
“There was unison in their purpose and action, signifying that they were all moved by a single criminal intent,” it said.
Espinosa and fellow inmate Yap were killed inside the Baybay sub-provincial jail in Leyte last Nov. 5 after the mayor allegedly shot at police officers who were serving a search warrant.
But the NBI said there was “no indication” that the operatives who participated in the operation desisted or those who acted as lookouts prevented the team from shooting the victims.
It added that the warrant was “maliciously obtained” because the information or affidavit it was based on was perjured.
It likewise said an operation dubbed “Oplan Galugad” executed on Oct. 30 already made sure to rid of any contraband they were looking for.
“The same effort, however, yielded nothing but a few items like cellular phones. It was therefore, impossible for Espinosa and Yap to possess these firearms and illegal drugs inside their respective cells on the night of the supposed implementation of the search warrants,” it said.
NBI director Dante Gierran said Marcos and all of the members of the CIDG-8 team involved in the jail raid will face multiple murder, robbery, malicious procurement of search warrant, perjury, and planting of evidence.
NBI spokesperson Ferdinand Lavin said the charges were filed Friday at the Department of Justice.
Marcos justified the raid, claiming it was done to maintain an element of surprise.
He denied that Espinosa was murdered while pleading for his life.
Several officials, including Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson and Albuera police chief Inspector Jovie Espenido, have raised suspicions that the mayor was murdered in a possible rub-out.
The CCTV footage of the alleged “shootout” remains missing.
A widow of a slain police officer on Monday also accused Marcos of being behind the death of her husband who allegedly refused to participate in an assassination plot against Espinosa. (ABS-CBN News)
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