CIDG, OMBUDSMAN PROBE NBI MEN INVOLVED IN 'MISTAKE SHOOTING'

CEBU CITY - The Region 7 office of the Criminal Investigation and Detection
Group(CIDG) has taken the testimonies of at least four witnesses who were
expected to shed light on the anti-narcotic operation of the National
Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 that went askew.

The CIDG 7 is also considering asking the NBI agents to agree to join a
lineup so the witnesses can identify those involved in the operation.

As this developed, the Office of the Visayas Ombudsman will also conduct
its own investigation to determine the liabilities of the NBI agents.

Ombudsman Director Virginia Palanca-Santiago said her office could
immediately conduct the investigation, but she stressed that a swift
investigation could be done if the victims as well as witnesses would
surface to shed light on the incident.

Last Friday, five resort workers were injured when NBI agents fired at a
van that, they thought, was carrying a suspected drug dealer. One of the
five injured workers was resort sports manager Michael Monsod, nephew of
former Comelec chairman Christian Monsod.

Aside from Monsod, 32, also wounded were Nenette Castillon, 30, spa
supervisor; Carlo Cajoles, 24, sports attendant; Sunshine Gregorio, 24, PR
associate; and Don Enabe, laundry attendant.

Alfie Fernandez, sports coordinator, suffered minor wounds from splinters.

Region 7 NBI Director Romulo Manapsal identified five of his men who
participated in the operation as lawyer Angelito Magno and special
investigators Arnel Pura, Danilo Garay, Rey Tumalon and Teodoro Saavedra.

Police Regional Director Rolando Garcia ordered the investigation, saying
the NBI agents would be treated as ordinary crime suspects.

CIDG regional chief Edwin Diocos, whose agency is leading the task force,
said NBI officials were "uncooperative," stalling the police probe. Diocos
said they would just depend on the testimonies of the witnesses and the
victims and physical evidence gathered by the Police Crime Laboratory. "We
will no longer appeal to them to get information," Diocos said. The PNP
Crime Laboratory initially disclosed that the evidence found at the scene
showed that five different calibers of firearms were used during the
incident, described by witnesses as a "massacre."

After the incident, the NBI presented only five agents who took part in the
operation, but police witnesses said there were more than 10 who fired
their guns. The agents turned over their 9 mm and .45 service pistols, but
police found empty shells of bullets for M16 rifle and other firearms at
the scene.