Manila court junks anew Lacson's plea for reinvestigation

The Manila Regional Trial Court has once again denied Sen. Panfilo Lacson's plea to have the Department of Justice reinvestigate the Dacer-Corbito double murder case in which he is the prime suspect. In an order issued on December 22, Manila RTC Branch 18 Presiding Judge Thelma Bunyi-Medina said she will maintain her February 4 and July 23, 2010 rulings stating that a reinvestigation will be unnecessary. In effect, the court is also sustaining its ruling that Lacson's arrest warrant remains in effect. "This court maintains its earlier stance that to order a reinvestigation at this point in time will accomplish nothing but to cause further delay in the disposition of this case," said the court's order. It also said it found "no compelling reason to deviate from its previous findings."

Lacson, a former chief of the National Police, is currently in hiding after he was named as prime suspect in the Nov. 2000 killings of publicist Salvador “Bubby" Dacer and Emmanuel Corbito. He has denied involvement in the crime and vowed not to surface unless a reinvestigation is done. In its Dec. 22 ruling, the Manila court said that instead of ordering the DOJ to conduct a reinvestigation, it is best to wait for the Court of Appeals' decision on Lacson's petition seeking to void the trial court's February and July rulings. "The better course of action is to await for the decision of the appellate court in the said petition rather than to order a reinvestigation of this case for definitely a favorable final decision for Senator Lacson in regard to the issues raised therein will render moot the reinvestigation that the DOJ will conduct in this case," said the Manila court. Lacson's lawyer, Alex Poblador, said he has yet to see the Manila court's order. Despite this, he said Lacson's camp will again elevate the matter to the CA. "We will simply elevate that order to the Court of Appeals by way of a supplemental certiorari petition," Poblador said in a text message when asked for his comment on the Manila court’s ruling. Lacson left the country in January 5 this year, two days before the DOJ slapped murder charges against him for the Dacer-Corbito killings. At the time of the killings, Lacson was concurrent PNP chief and head of the now defunct Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF), the unit said to be behind the killings of Dacer and Corbito. — KBK/RSJ, GMANews.TV