NBI: Suspects in Gerry Ortega slay in INTERPOL wanted list

The National Bureau of Investigation has placed former Palawan governor Joel T. Reyes and his brother, Coron Mayor Mario Reyes in the International Criminal Police Organization’s Red Notice list. The siblings are accused of murdering radio broadcaster and environmental activist Gerardo “Doc Gerry” Ortega in January 2011.

 

The Reyes brothers were included in Interpol’s most wanted list after they failed to surrender to authorities following the issuance of warrants of arrest by the Puerto Princesa regional trial court. They went into hiding last March after the Department of Justice found probable cause to indict them for the murder of Ortega.

 

Interpol’s Red Notice list is the organization’s directory of the world’s most wanted.  

“While speculations arose that the brothers have left the country illegally, this development surely gives us much hope that eventually they will be captured and tried in the court of law,” Ortega's daughter, Michaela Angeli, said in a statement.

 

The Ortega family and their sympathizers had earlier offered a P1.55 million reward for those who could provide information that would lead to the arrest of the Reyes brothers.

 

“We call for the brothers to surrender immediately and peacefully. The mere fact that they remain as fugitives to this day--international fugitives at that--does not do anything to convince our family and the people of the Philippines of their innocence,” Michaela added.

 

Along with the Reyes brothers, also charged with the murder of the broadcaster are former Palawan provincial administrator Romeo Seratubias, Arturo Regalado, and Valentin Lecias.

 

Out of the five suspects, the Reyes brothers are the only ones who are still at large. The first one to fall was Seratubias, who was arrested immediately following the issuance of the warrant. A few weeks later, Regalado surrendered to authorities, while Lecias was apprehended in Manila.

 

Ortega was gunned down last January 24 at an ukay-ukay store in Puerto Princesa. Reyes, his erstwhile political rival, was tagged as the alleged mastermind after the triggerman squealed.

 

In its resolution, the DOJ said the radio commentaries of Ortega on alleged irregularities in the bidding and awarding of mining concessions in Palawan as well as alleged misuse of public funds coming from the Malampaya gas project, served as motive for the conspiracy to murder him.

 

The prosecutors also gave weight to additional evidence submitted by the Ortega family, such as the mobile phone communications between another suspect, Rodolfo “Bumar” Edrad Jr. and Reyes, as well as the recording of radio commentaries of the victim against the former Palawan governor.

 

Based on the prosecutors' scrutiny of the former governor's outgoing text messages, Reyes sent 15 text messages to Edrad in December 2010, and 27 text messages in January 2011. On the day Ortega was gunned down, January 24, 2011, Reyes sent Edrad 16 messages.

 

The frequent communication between Edrad and Reyes would seem to belie the latter’s denials that the gunman had served as his close-in security or that there was no conspiracy. The panel also noted that Reyes was out of the country when some of said text messages were sent to Edrad. — DVM/ELR, GMA News