Strunk compelled to face charges in RP

Government prosecutors have compelled Rod Strunk, the primary suspect in the murder of his wife, veteran actress Nida Blanca, to return to the Philippines and face the criminal charges filed against him, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Director Nestorio Gualberto said yesterday.

Gualberto issued the statement after the Department of Justice (DOJ) junked a motion by Strunk’s lawyers to seek the dismissal of criminal charges against him.

"Mr. Strunk will be forced to return to the Philippines and personally take oath before prosecutors who are now conducting the preliminary investigation. At this stage, he cannot be represented here by his lawyers or anybody else," Gualberto said.

Former Justice Harriet Demetriou, lawyer of Blanca’s daughter Kaye Torres, said her client has been briefed about the latest development.

In a three-page order dated Aug. 21, state prosecutors Archimedes Manabat, Aida Macapagal and Mark Jalandoni denied the motions filed by Strunk’s lawyers to defer the issuance of subpoena for their client.

"A perusal of the grounds raised in the said omnibus motion shows that the arguments raised therein are matters of defense which should be embodied in a counter-affidavit instead of a mere motion of his counsel," the order read. "Moreover, Strunk’s motion which seeks for the dismissal of the proceedings is prohibited at this stage."

Gualberto said the CIDG will be presenting new witness Alfredo Rodriguez, who admitted to taking part in surveillance operations on Blanca prior to her brutal death on Nov. 7 last year.

Rodriguez miraculously survived an attempt by his colleagues to silence him a month after Blanca was found dead inside her car at the parking lot of the Atlanta Center in Greenhills, San Juan.