DOJ probes military involvement in Italian priest's slay

MANILA, Philippines - Investigators are looking into the possible involvement of the military in the killing of Italian missionary Fausto Tentorio in North Cotabato last Monday.

Department of Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III, chair of DOJ special task force on extralegal killings, which supervises the joint probe of the Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation, yesterday confirmed that investigators have pinpointed two possible suspects but refused to give details so as not to jeopardize the ongoing operations.

“We are looking into a report that a paramilitary group was involved (in the killing). That’s part of the investigation especially since there’s a perception among the people there that Fr. Tentorio was a leftist,” he said.

Baraan said investigators are “moving very carefully” and are pursuing all possible angles of the case.

He said another possible motive for the killing is the victim’s involvement in the campaign against mining operations in North Cotabato.

The DOJ official said Tentorio’s case puts to test the new strategy of their task force in investigating killings.

“This is the first time we created a local task force composed of the local NBI, PNP and prosecutors from Cotabato. We are changing our approach. This time, prosecutors are taking part in building up the case so we can have a strong one,” he said.

Baraan, who plans to visit Cotabato to check on the progress of the investigation, said he expects a “big development” by next week.

Tentorio’s family is expected to arrive in the country on Saturday to attend his funeral on Oct. 25 in a cemetery in Kidapawan City, North Cotabato, near the grave of his confrere Fr. Tullio Favali.

The remains of the Italian missionary will be brought to Kidapawan City on Oct. 24.

CBCPNews, the official news service provider of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said Tentorio’s family will travel from Lecco in northern Italy to Kidapawan, arriving on Oct. 22. 

Tentorio, 59, of the Rome-based Pontifical Institute for Foreign Mission was about to board his car parked inside the Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in Arakan town when an unidentified suspect shot him twice in the head.

Witnesses said the gunman, who wore a helmet, fled on a motorcycle driven by an accomplice.

Tentorio had been a longtime parish priest of Arakan and had good ties with the people there. He was a known environmentalist and had a strong advocacy against mining operations in Arakan and nearby towns.

He was recently named titular head of the municipality’s anti-crime Task Force Arakan, a multi-sectoral group helping the police maintain peace and order in the area.

The CBCP asked the Aquino administration to provide security for Church workers, especially foreigners. 

“We earnestly ask that necessary safety measures be accorded to all Church workers, especially the missionaries who have left their country to serve our people,” CBCP secretary- general Monsignor Juanito Figura said in a statement. 

Figura said they also join the demand for authorities to immediately solve the murder of Tentorio.    

CBCP Public Affairs committee chairman Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez said the government should also address the spate of killings in the country. 

“This is very alarming… the government should look into this so they can provide a proper solution,” he said in an interview.

The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (CoMP) likewise expressed its sadness and condemnation over Tentorio’s killing.

“We are enraged and condemn in the strongest terms this yet another act of violence against a man of God. We strongly criticize some leaders of the Roman Catholic Church and anti-mining groups who were quick to link the entire minerals development industry to this crime,” the CoMP said in a statement. – With Evelyn Macairan, Raymund Catindig, Marianne Go