By: Antonio Hernandez 

The National Buteau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday filed murder charges against suspended Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director general Gerald Bantag and several others for allegedly giving the order to kill radio commentator Percival "Percy Lapid" Mabasa in Las Pinas City, as well as that of Bilibid inmate Jun Villamor, the supposed middleman in the case. 

Aside from Bantag, the other BuCor official charged is Deputy Security Officer 2 Ricardo Zulueta, whom NBI and police investigators said relayed the order for Lapid's assassination. 

"The case has been filed with our prosecutors and from there we will proceed with the case proper and hopefully this issue will be laid to rest the way it should be when crime is committed  against a citizen of the Republic of the Philippines, especially this time we are talking about a member of the media," DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said in a joint press conference with DILG Secretary Benhur Abalos. 

To recall, Bantag was initially named as one of the 160 persons of interest in the case. 

He was suspended from the BuCor as investigators tried to gather information on Mabasa's killing and the subsequent death of Villamor on October 18 hours after he was tagged by Escorial as the middleman in the case. 

Mabasa, the tough-talking voice behind DWBL's 1242's "Lapid Fire" program wad ambushed by two motorcycle-riding gunmen in Las Pinas city on October 3. 

He was the second journalist killed in the country under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

Aside from Bantag and Zulueta, the joint NBI-PNP probe also showed the other persons involved in the murders of Lapid and Villamor. 

They are Denver Mayores, an inmate at the Iwahig Penal Colony in  Palawan and a trusted aide of Bantag, Alvin Labra, commander of the Batang City Jail gang, Aldrin Galicia  commander of the Sputnik gang, Mario Alvarez, member of Sputnik gang and Joseph Georfo, also a member of Sputnik. 

The probe said it was Bantag who gave the order to kill Lapid while Zulueta was the one who related Bantag's instruction to Mayores. 

As to Bantag's possible motive, Remulla pointed to Lapid's continued exposure of his alleged corrupt ways in the BuCor while for Villamor, it wad the cover up Lapid's death. 

Mayores then called Labra who then instructed Galicia who the relayed the order to Georfo. 

Georfo in turn relayed the same to Alvarez.
It was the same manner in the killing of Villamor with Alvarez relaying the instruction to kill him to four Sputnik members. 

Four inmates-alias Jokon, Lupin, Barok and Puppet then killed Villamor. 

The NBI-PNP probe said it was Jokon "who placed the plastic bag over Villamor's head that suffocated him," adding that Villamor "did not struggle." 

Prior to Villamor's killing, he was able to send messages through messenger to his sister identifying three prison gang leaders of Sputnik, Happy Go Lucky and Batang City Jail as the persons who could order his killing upon instruction from the office in the New Bilibid Prison.    

Remulla cited the " principle of totality of all the facts given by witnesses and the circumstances attendant to the killings" that led them to the conclusion that it was Bantag who masterminded the murders of Lapid and Villamor. 

"This is an exceptional case. None of these people will talk of Bantag will remain in the BuCor. Their fear of him is so great " he added. 

But he said Bantag and the other accused would be given due process and a fair hearing of their side. 

"They will be given the chance to answer the allegations during the preliminary investigation before the DOJ," he said.