Still no solid leads in photographer’s killing

CEBU CITY — Since Freeman photojournalist Allan Dizon was gunned down last Nov. 27, there have been no solid leads yet for the resolution of the case.

Task Force Newsman, headed by Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Salvador Manga, said it has so far gathered lots of raw information and theories surrounding the circumstances that might have triggered the killing, but witnesses have failed to identify the gunman since he was wearing a helmet at the time.

Manga said the task force is currently examining the credibility of every bit of information it has gathered.

He revealed that he met someone last Thursday night who gave him valuable information on the case. He refused to give details.

Manga said they have detailed the progress of the investigation in a confidential report which they submitted to Philippine National Police chief Director General Edgar Aglipay during the PNP command conference here yesterday.

The only thing Manga could say was that the report analyzed the facts of the case and gave recommendations on how to finally pin down the gunman of Dizon, who was found to have received death threats before the killing but merely ignored them.

Manga said the separate investigation of the National Bureau of Investigation will not conflict with the task force’s because both probes have practically gathered the same information.

He said PO2 Brazilio Borinaga, one of the last people who had communicated with Dizon hours before he was shot dead at the north reclamation area, has not revealed everything he knows about the incident.

He and Mayor Tomas Osmeña both believe that Borinaga is still hiding some information which might prove vital to the resolution of the case.

"His seeming reluctance to cooperate, his seeming inconsistency in cross-examination. It is clear that he is not (telling everything)," Osmeña told reporters, saying he considers Borinaga a suspect in the killing, noting the meeting he had arranged with Dizon hours before the attack.

Borinaga further got embroiled in the case when he himself volunteered the information that he got a text message ostensibly from an unknown source alleging that Dizon was killed for trying to ask for money in exchange for the texter’s being dropped from the drug watchlist of the city police.

"He is undesirable. I don’t like him to be here in Cebu," Osmeña said of Borinaga whom he had recommended for transfer outside of Cebu.

The mayor said he received negative information on Borinaga’s supposed recommendation to the Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Bureau to declare Barangay Lorega-San Miguel, where Dizon used to live, as "video karera-free."

"I’m convinced that he is not on our side," Osmeña said.

Manga, however, said Borinaga is not being treated as a suspect but as a source of information.

He said the policeman’s impending transfer to Bohol is a welcome development but added that he would rather have him stay at the city police office since the probe has yet to gain substantial ground.

Manga said Borinaga knew Dizon well and had a working relationship with him, adding that Dizon acted as a police asset who provided information on illegal drug and gambling operations, especially in Barangay Lorega-San Miguel.

Osmeña believes that Borinaga might influence or interfere in the investigation if he continues to be an active member of the city police, which explained why he requested regional police director Rolando Garcia to reassign him to Bohol.

Osmeña said he also believes that many policemen — and barangay officials, too — are involved in illegal activities, under the payroll of video karera operators and drug pushers. — Freeman News Service