DOJ defers hearing on trafficking case vs recruiter of executed Pinoy

(Updated 4:07 p.m.) A Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutor has postponed the preliminary investigation hearing on the human trafficking complaint filed against Tita Cacayan, the alleged recruiter of one of the three Filipinos executed in China last week for drug trafficking. Senior State Prosecutor Lilian Doris Alejo was supposed to conduct the hearing on Monday but was forced to postpone it because the complainant, the family of executed drug courier Sally Ordinario-Villanueva, whom Cacayan allegedly recruited, was not present. Alejo reset the hearing on April 18. "I am expecting the respondent (Cacayan) to submit her counter affidavit and the complainants to appear," Alejo said. Cacayan attended Monday's hearing without a counter-affidavit and a lawyer. Alejo then assigned her to lawyer Florences Santa Ana of the Public Attorney's Office (PAO), which is tasked to provide legal assistance to indigent clients. Alejo said the postponement to April 18 will give Cacayan more time to present her own pieces of evidence. "She will not be able to submit her evidence now so we'll give her a chance," she said. Human trafficking The family of Villanueva filed charges against Cacayan for her alleged violation of the Anti-Human Trafficking in Persons Act or Republic Act No. 9208. Cacayan told Alejo that she is "not aware" of the nature of the charges filed against her. She only admitted that she used the nickname Mapet Cortez and that decades ago, she served as an overseas contract worker in Taiwan, Macau, and Hong Kong. In a brief interview with reporters, Cacayan said she is leaving the matter to God. "Si Lord na po ang bahala," she said. Cacayan is accused of recruiting Villanueva to bring illegal drugs to China in 2008. Villanueva, along with Ramon Credo and Elizabeth Batain, was executed in China last March 30. Cacayan turned herself in to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) last Friday, saying she had been receiving death threats. She remains under the protective custody of the bureau and cannot be considered detained yet because her case is still at the preliminary investigation stage. In her affidavit, Villanueva said Cacayan had her bring to China a bag, which turned out to contain illegal drugs. Drug trafficking is a capital offense in China. - KBK, GMA News