The Department of Justice and the Department of Interior and Local Government are creating a joint panel to investigate whether law enforcers are in cahoots with carnapping syndicates, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima announced on Tuesday.
At a news briefing, De Lima said the move was catalyzed by the gruesome killings of car dealers Emerson Lozano and Venson Evanglista, and Lozano's driver, Ernani Sencil.
"It's difficult to believe that carnapping has grown as an illegal trade or criminal activity without the collusion or conspiracy, at the very least. When we talk about law enforcers, we refer to the PNP [Philippine National Police] officers and men and possibly [the] NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] men," said De Lima.
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She added that even government prosecutors will be subject to investigation. De Lima then questioned why alleged carnapping syndicate leader Raymond Dominguez was reportedly allowed to post bail 19 times after being linked to car theft cases.
"Questions are raised about how come Dominguez was able to post bail 19 times," De Lima said.
In a television interview on Monday, Chief Superintendent Allan Purisima, Region 3 police director, said Dominguez is facing 34 cases, including 20 carnapping cases. Dominguez has posted bail on 31 of those cases, Purisima said.
Dominguez carnapping syndicate
Dominguez had been linked to the carjacking of a Toyota Land Cruiser of car dealer Venson Evangelista, who disappeared in Quezon City Jan. 13. Evangelista's charred and brutalized body was found in Nueva Ecija the next day.
One of the suspects in the case, Alfred Mendiola, linked Dominguez to the Evangelista case, as well as a similar carjack-slay involving Emerson, the son of Marcos lawyer Oliver Lozano.
The police, however, have yet to charge Dominguez for the killing of Emerson and Sencil.
Emerson and Sencil disappeared Jan. 12 while going to meet a prospective buyer of Lozano's van. Sencil's charred body was found in Tarlac Jan. 13, and Lozano's was found in Pampanga Jan. 14. Lozano's van was found burning in Bataan province Jan. 19.
Carnapping to be made a non-bailable offense?
On Tuesday, De Lima said that the DOJ-DILG team will check whether carnapping cases dismissed by prosecutors "have been above board" and whether "the dismissal has basis."
If found otherwise, De Lima said that as Justice secretary, she has the plenary powers to order a reinvestigation.
"Under the rules, the Secretary of Justice has plenary powers to order reinvestigation. At the preliminary investigation stage, the rule or the principle of double jeopardy does not apply. We can always order a preliminary investigation if warranted, if the previous dismissal has been questionable," she said.
De Lima said the joint team can likewise recommend that government prosecutors raise the amount of bail of carnapping suspects.
Answering calls that carnapping should be made a non-bailable offense, De Lima replied: "We will defer to the wisdom of Congress on that."
On Monday, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV filed a bill aimed at making carnapping a non-bailable offense. For his part, Senator Francis Escudero filed a measure proposing to increase the penalty for carnapping. [See: Increased penalty for carnappers sought in Senate] — RSJ
