DOJ panel to probe criminal complaint vs Bar blast suspect

The Department of Justice will form a panel of prosecutors to look into the criminal complaint filed against Anthony Leal Nepomuceno, a suspect in the grenade attack during the revelries at this year's Bar examinations. On Friday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Prosecutor General Claro Arellano will determine who among the department's prosecutors will constitute the panel. "[The complaint] will be assigned most probably to a panel, so I leave it to the Office of the Prosecutor General. Of course, that will be subject to my approval since this is a more or less a high-profile case. So I expect the Prosecutor General will recommend the constitution of a panel to handle preliminary investigation," De Lima told reporters. On Thursday, the National Bureau of Investigation filed (NBI) multiple frustrated murder and multiple attempted murder complaint against Nepomuceno, who has repeatedly denied lobbing the grenade that injured more than 40 people. The complaint was based on, among others, eyewitness accounts pointing to Nepomunceno, a member of the Alpha Phi Omega (APO) fraternity, as the grenade-thrower. NBI spokesperson Cecilio Zamora said there is also evidence that the grenade-throwing could have been "premeditated." On Thursday, De Lima said the NBI can also recommend the inclusion of the witnesses in the DOJ's Witness protection program. "The NBI will probably recommend and that will be acted upon by the WPP office," she said. De Lima likewise said the APO fraternity has the right to defend Nepomuceno and even question how the NBI tracked down Nepomuceno, who surrendered himself to authorities on Wednesday. "That is their prerogative if they feel they have to help their brod. For as long as they [are] within the bounds of law and within the bounds of ethics, I have nothing against it," said De Lima. –VVP, GMANews.TV