DOJ orders NBI to reopen Bentain case

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Justice (DOJ) ordered yesterday a reinvestigation into the disappearance of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. employee Edgar Bentain.

Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera said she has instructed the National Bureau of Investigation to reopen the case upon the request of Bentain’s family and in response to the exposé of Sen. Panfilo Lacson against deposed President Joseph Estrada last Tuesday. The NBI is under the Justice Department.

An NBI task force will be formed to look into the possibility that Bentain was killed as suggested by Lacson in his privilege speech.

“We want an open investigation. With new bits of information from Sen. Lacson – although there still is no witness – the case of Mr. Bentain transformed from missing person to a possible crime committed,” she told reporters at a press conference.

Bentain was said to be the source of the videotape that showed Estrada playing high stakes baccarat with friends in the VIP pit of a posh casino.

Devanadera’s order came after a closed-door meeting with Bentain brothers Edcel and Eddie, who told her that recent developments provide “a very important lead to the solution of the 10-year unresolved abduction of our brother.”

The Bentain brothers asked the NBI to invite Lacson and ask him to shed light on the case.

“Before we were groping in the dark, but now there’s light. So we’re calling on Sen. Lacson and hopefully we’ll know more,” Edcel said in Filipino.

Lacson, in his speech, claimed to have been told that Bentain was “abducted somewhere in Roxas Boulevard and killed somewhere in Laguna.”

A day after the alleged killing, in January 1999, a police officer reportedly went to Polk Street in the posh Greenhills village in San Juan and “reported compliance with a mission” to an unnamed resident.

The Estradas are the most prominent residents of Polk Street.

The senator did not provide other details or how he got the information.

Devanadera said an earlier NBI probe on the case focused on the search for Bentain since it was then a missing persons case.

“Now we have an open investigation. The focus will really depend on information gathered. So we are calling on persons out there who have information on this case to help the NBI in the investigation,” she said.

She stressed that it would be up to the NBI task force to decide how to go about with the investigation, particularly whether it would invite Lacson.

Devanadera also explained that the legal presumption of death of a person missing for over seven years might apply to the case of Bentain.

“But for the establishment of crime, we need evidence for that. We need to find the body or, if not, find a witness to pinpoint where it was disposed of,” she added.

In the same news conference, NBI deputy director for intelligence services Ruel Lasala revealed that the bureau conducted its investigation for four years after the disappearance of Bentain.

He said NBI agents searched for the missing Pagcor employee all over the country, but did not touch on the angle of murder since there was no clear allegation then that he was killed. Bentain was last seen outside Grand Boulevard Hotel (formerly Silahis Hotel) being dragged into a waiting vehicle by unidentified armed men.

Earlier, the family of Bentain expressed disappointment over Lacson’s speech, saying the senator was “holding back for some leverage.”

He said the only new information they learned from the speech was that Edgar was killed in Laguna.

The Bentains said they had thought all along that Edgar was killed in Cavite until Ador Mawanay surfaced and claimed the killing was in Pampanga.

Edcel asked the unidentified retired police officer mentioned in Lacson’s speech to coordinate with them and help give justice to their brother.

Potential state witness

Lacson, meanwhile, said he was trying to convince the retired police officer to become state witness.

“This can blow the case wide open,” Lacson said.

Lacson also said he is accepting the challenge to bring his allegations against the former president to the courts.

“They are challenging me to bring them to court. So I’ll take up the challenge,” he said.

“I am still working on the former police officer who relayed that information through (an) emissary who came to my office,” Lacson said.

“If he decides to be a state witness and I can work it out for him to turn state witness, why not?” he said.

Lacson noted it would be up to the former police officer to coordinate with the family of Bentain.

“I will not be the one to go to court, it should be the family of Bentain,” Lacson explained.

The senator said he did not name names because “there are other people involved and I don’t want to identify them by their names because they are not included in this puzzle.”

He said it was not true that he kept the information about Bentain for so long as alleged by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada. He said he received the facts on the case only three days after he delivered his first privilege speech.

Lacson said the retired police officer, who was a direct participant in the crime, sent an emissary to him.

“So I listened to him (emissary), he gave me information, and then I asked him to relay to the former police officer if he would be willing to act as state witness and if I can work it out probably he can come out and tell all,” Lacson said.

“I was told that the former police officer, as relayed to me by that emissary, was a participant in the abduction but did not participate in the actual liquidation. I was told Bentain was turned over to another group,” he added.

Lacson stressed that even as former chief of the Philippine National Police, he did not know of these details and thus could not be accused of not doing anything.

“I am getting more information because people are coming to give me all the information they have,” he said.

Lacson earlier expressed dismay over the reactions of the Bentain and Dacer families to his revelations.

Sabina Dacer-Reyes also said it would be best for Lacson to execute an affidavit if he wanted to help them solve the killing of her father, Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito.

Lacson said he came out in the open not to please anyone or any group but just to expose the truth.

“But if they are unhappy and criticizing me, it’s their right to voice out their perception and opinion. But I said in all sincerity I want justice to be served not only to the Dacer and Corbito families but also to Bentain,” Lacson said.

“I am still trying to convince the person (police officer) to give me additional or complete information. I’m working on that. But if the Bentain family will criticize me instead, who will have the interest to help?”

Lacson and former President Estrada are being linked to the Dacer-Corbito murders but both denied involvement, saying they did not have any motive to have the publicist killed.

“I won’t ask for any condition for them (Dacer sisters) to exclude me from the case. I am willing to give them whatever leads or information I can give them because the facts I gathered are sufficient,” Lacson said.

No wiretapping

Lacson also denied he was engaged in wiretapping but disclosed that it was alleged gambling lord Charlie “Atong” Ang to whom Jinggoy was appealing in a phone conversation not to implicate him and his mother, former Senator Luisa “Loi” Ejercito Estrada, in the plunder case against the former president.

Lacson said his information about the conversation came from reliable sources and not from illegal means as alleged by Jinggoy.

“That’s the funny thing because he did not refute what I said, that there were telephone conversations between him and another person, who is Charlie ‘Atong’ Ang,” Lacson said.