The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday welcomed the move by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to offer a reward for information leading to the arrest of former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag and former BuCor deputy security officer Ricardo Zulueta, the alleged masterminds behind the murder of broadcaster Percival "Percy Lapid" Mabasa.
PNP Receives ₱3 Million Reward for Information on Bantag, Zulueta
“We welcome the move of the DOJ to offer a big reward. On the part of the PNP, the reward published by the DOJ will convince and encourage people who may know the whereabouts of the two suspects to come forward with information for their speedy arrest,” PNP spokesman Col. Jean Fajardo told reporters when asked for comment in a telephone interview.
Bantag and Zulueta are facing charges of murder before the regional courts of Muntinlupa and Las Piñas for the killing last year of Mabasa and Cristito Villamor Palaña (alias Jun Villamor), an inmate at the New Bilibid prison in Muntinlupa city.
Villamor allegedly hired self-confessed gunman Joel Escorial to kill Mabasa. He later died or was allegedly killed on Bantag's orders, Zulueta reported.
