PNP scores attempts to muddle Nida probe

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Leandro Mendoza charged yesterday that certain quarters were trying to muddle up investigation of the Nov. 7 murder of actress Nida Blanca.

This developed as the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) granted a petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by the family of missing businessman Mike Martinez, who was allegedly abducted by seven armed men and a woman on Nov. 19.

Mendoza was reacting to published reports (not in The STAR) attributed to unnamed sources who accused the PNP of planting a witness now in the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), which has taken the lead role in the probe.

"Such disinformation is apparently designed to sow intrigue between the PNP and the NBI, and to throw our investigators off track," Mendoza said.

Mendoza assured the public that the PNP was committed to dig up the truth in the murder of the multi-awarded actress named Dorothy Jones in real life.

"All of us want to find out the truth so that the ends of justice will be served. This requires concerted efforts among the law enforcement agencies," Mendoza stressed.

He pointed out that he was personally in touch with NBI Director Reynaldo Wycoco for closer coordination in their parallel investigations.

Meanwhile, PNP community relations chief Director Thompson Lantion said they will appeal the ruling handed down by RTC Judge Percival Lopez directing the PNP to produce Martinez in court today.

"How can we produce him if we do not have him?" Lantion asked.

In his decision, Lopez said he was baffled why the PNP "did not exert earnest effort to locate the whereabouts of Martinez despite their belief in his culpability (in the murder of Blanca)."

The petition for writ was filed by Martinez’s mother Teresita and wife Ma. Estrellita who accused the police of abducting him while he was walking to his mother’s house in Sun Valley subdivision in Parañaque City.

The judge gave credence to a testimony by self-confessed killed Philip Medel Jr. that he and Martinez met in the same room at the offices of the criminal investigation and detection group of the PNP in Camp Crame.

Lopez asked why did the police not look for Martinez when the police officials admitted in Court that they had investigated several employees of the MTRCB (Movie and Television Review and Classification Board), several construction workers and security guards of the Atlanta Centre in San Juan where Blanca was found dead at the backseat of her car early in the morning of Nov. 7.

In a related development, a team of police operatives were dispatched to conduct close surveillance on Blanca’s American husband, Rod Lauren Strunk, following reports that he was planning to leave the country.

In his confession which he retracted later, Medel claimed that Strunk was the brains behind the slay plot on Blanca, while Martinez recruited him to act as lookout while they accosted their target.

"He (Strunk) should first clear all doubts on his alleged complicity in the crime before setting off for abroad," a source in Camp Crame said.

"We are sure Medel was involved in the crime and is just covering up for the other suspects which we are about to unmask through other witnesses," the source added.

The probe on the Blanca murder took another twist yesterday with the appearance of actress Anabelle Rama before the PNP’s Task Force Marsha, but the probers were tight-lipped on her visit. – Christina Mendez, Nikko Dizon, Matthew Estabillo, Jaime Laude