Murder raps vs Atong Ang, Gretchen Barretto submitted for reso — prosecutor

MANILA, Philippines — The murder complaints filed against tycoon Atong Ang and other individuals implicated in the missing sabungeros case are now being resolved by prosecutors.

This means that a resolution on the case may result in the filing of charges before the courts after years of investigation into the disappearance of the cockfight enthusiasts.

"The panel will try to resolve the case as soon as possible, within the period provided by the rules," Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Charlie Guhit said.

However, there has yet to be a specific date for when the prosecutors will issue a resolution on the case, according to Guhit.

Out of the 62 individuals named as respondents, 57 — including Ang and celebrity Gretchen Barretto — submitted their counter-affidavits as required by the prosecutors.

As of writing, one of the respondents, Ryan Orapa, has yet to submit his counter-affidavit.

However, if the case is dismissed, the complainants can refile it with the Department of Justice, according to Guhit.

"So it's either dismissal ang case or for filing. If the case is dismissed, they can refile the case with the Department of Justice by submitting what are the documents lacking or the testimonies of the witnesses that will be submitted in addition to the complaint," he said.

Ang's lawyer, Gabriel Villareal, said that they wish for the case to be returned to the Philippine National Police - Criminal Investigation and Detection Group for further review, asserting that the existing evidence is reportedly not credible enough to stand.

"If we simply dismiss this case without a resolution on what really happened, I would rather that it be returned to the CIDG so they can thoroughly study and gather all the complete evidence they can find," Villareal said in an ambush interview with reporters.

The families of the missing cockfight enthusiasts filed the complaints against Ang and the 61 individuals.

This was after the revelation of self-proclaimed whistleblower Julie Patidongan, who claimed that Ang is the mastermind behind the disappearances of the cockfight enthusiasts reported missing since 2021.

In response to Patidongan's revelations, Ang filed several complaints against Patidongan, which were dismissed by a Mandaluyong City prosecutor on September 30.