DOJ PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION RULING ‘FLAWED, UNFAIR — ATONG ANG LAWYER  

A LAWYER for Charlie “Atong” Ang on Wednesday assailed the resolution of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to finally charge the businessman in court in connection with the missing “sabungero” case.

Defense counsel attorney Gabriel L. Villareal described the ruling of the DOJ’s panel of prosecutors as “deeply flawed and grossly unfair to the accused.”

Villareal said they are likely to file a motion for reconsideration and ask the DOJ for the reversal of the decision.

“The ruling, while likely given the bias apparent from DOJ conduct, suffers from clear factual gaps and substantial inconsistencies. Clearly the panel relied heavily on the flawed testimony of a lone witness whose integrity is irreversibly compromised,” Villareal said.

Villareal accused Patidongan of manipulating the proceedings to save himself.

“It is unfortunate that the DOJ has been taken for a ride by a dubious witness masquerading as a crusader, out to pin the blame on my client to save his hide,” Ang’s lawyer said.

“The fact that the DOJ did not recommend the filing of cases against the majority of those who were originally implicated in the case is, by itself, glaring proof of the spurious nature of Patidongan’s account,” the lawyer  argued.

The defense counsel reiterated his earlier call for the Philippine National Police-Criminal Detection and Investigation Group (PNP-CIDG) to reinvestigate the case.

“Ordering a police reinvestigation is not only proper but mandated given the serious questions surrounding the legality and fairness of how this case has been handled,” said Villareal.

“We are confident that we will debunk all malicious and fabricated claims made by Patidongan at the opportune time. He is the architect of this gruesome crime, no other,” the lawyer added.