Lady legislator accused of 'kidnapping' witnesses in slay of alleged drug suspect

  MANILA – Former congressman Jacinto Paras filed on Monday charges of kidnapping, obstruction of justice and wiretapping against Senator Risa Hontiveros before the Ombudsman. Paras, who represented the central Philippine province of Negros Oriental when he was still in Congress, accused Hontiveros of allegedly taking into custody of minors who are witnesses in the killing of 17-year-old student Kian Loyd delos Santos, who police claimed was a drug runner. Delos Santos was killed by police in an alleged shootout near the teenager's home in Caloocan City – a component city in Metro Manila – on August 16. CCTV footage however showed that the police forcibly took Delos Santos before shooting him dead in an alley. The killing of Delos Santos resulted in widespread outrage over alleged police abuse in the government's anti-drug war campaign. Paras accusd Hontiveros of allegedly convincing the minor to leave their homes and go to an undisclosed location without informing authorities. "It is also very clear that she kept custody of these children from the period of Aug. 19, 2017 to Sept. 3, 2017 and turned over to the Senate custody only on Sept. 4, 2017 to testify in the Senate investigation, and then again took control and custody of the minors after said Senate hearing and placed them in the care of a certain Bishop Pablo David," the complaint said. The wiretapping complaint, on the other hand, stemmed from Hontiveros's recent privilege speech in the Senate wherein she showed a photo of a supposed exchange of text messages between Paras and Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre on a plan to file charges against the senator. The supposed text exchange occurred during a Senate hearing on the Delos Santos killing attended by Aguirre and Hontiveros. The complaint said Hontiveros knowingly received a journalist's photograph that illegally showed Aguirre's text messages with Paras, which falls under wiretapping. The complaint cited Republic Act 4200 or the Anti-Wiretapping law, which states that, "it shall be unlawful for any person, not being authorized by all the parties to any private communication or spoken word, to tap any wire or cable, or by using an other device or arrangement, to secretly overheard, intercept or record such communication." After Hontiveros complained about Aguirre's actuations and called for the justice secretary to resign, she dared Aguirre and Paras to sue her. Paras said he decided to take up Hontiveros's challenge. Meanwhile, Hontiveros was accused of obstruction of justice for allegedly refusing to turn over one of the minors to the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI). The NBI is conducting an investigation of the Delos Santos killing. This despite a letter from the PAO requesting the Senate to turn over the custody of the minor to the agency. Paras said Hontiveros's refusal "is an act which constitutes obstruction of justice, committed by means of preventing witnesses from testifying in any criminal proceeding." GAC/Expat Media Ely Buendia and Up Dharma Down coming to Dubai. Don’t miss it!
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