NBI moving to find sender of e-mailed sex video

MANILA, Philippines - Who sent the email with the controversial videos of sexy actress Katrina Halili and celebrity cosmetic surgeon Hayden Kho Jr. to the website www.fleshasiadaily.com where they were first uploaded?

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents move to find the answer as their probe on the spread of the sex videos of the controversial celebrities in the Internet advanced, following a raid on the pornographic website’s office in Bacoor, Cavite last Friday.

NBI officials said they were hoping operators of the website who were invited for questioning would further cooperate in the investigation aimed at pinpointing the source of the email.

“But we are also utilizing other techniques to get the protocol address to unmask the source or sender. This is a difficult task but not impossible,” head agent Palmer Mallari, executive officer of the bureau’s Anti-Fraud and Computer Crimes Division (AFCCD), said referring to their high-end computer gadgets.

Technical surveillance of NBI showed that the sex videos were first uploaded on fleshasiadaily.com. This was affirmed by copies of the videos that showed logo of the website.

But operators of the website, Fidel Lazarte and his children Marvin and Jobert, had denied uploading any of the controversial sex videos of Kho with Halili and other women.

They only admitted during interrogation that they uploaded the video showing Kho and Halili practicing a performance of the song “Careless Whisper” for a celebrity singing competition. They also claimed that their website, which has some 1.2 million viewers daily, is not pornographic but supposedly only a “hobby site.”

Mallari said legal implications on the operators of the website would depend on their cooperation with the probe.

Operatives of AFCCD conducted a raid at Block 89, Topaz Street, Zapote Dos, Bacoor, Cavite last July 3.

AFCCD chief and NBI Assistant Regional Director Vicente de Guzman III said a technical surveillance led them to the location of the website.

He said the sex videos that appeared in other websites came from flesh-asidadaily.com. But the other websites later pulled out the videos.

A check on records of the website showed that its daily viewers also ballooned from 60,000 to over 1.2 million.

Meanwhile, the NBI also clarified that the operation on the posh village in Makati City last June 23 where Dr. Vicki Belo, one of those accused by Halili of spreading the videos, was not a raid operation.

NBI spokesman lawyer Allan Contado said their men visited Dasmariñas Village as part of regular investigative procedure to determine the authenticity of the documents submitted by the celebrity doctor – not to conduct search operation on Belo’s house.

He was reacting to a reported statement of Belo’s counsel, Adel Tamano, that the NBI team tried to search Belo’s house without any warrant, violating Belo’s right to privacy.

Contado said Mallari and agents Christian Ibasco and Glenn Nolacio went to the subdivision to determine the authenticity of the documents Belo had submitted to the NBI.

“Dr. Belo submitted a photocopy of the security logbook and as a procedure, the NBI wants to see the original security logbook.

The bureau is also to interview in person security guards who supposedly executed the affidavit to attest that they indeed exist with regard to the entries in the security logbook,” said Contado.

The NBI official reiterated that Mallari and his two companions did not enter the house of Belo and just stayed at the gate and had no intention of conducting any search on the premises.

“It was raining and the security guard allowed them to enter the gate to take cover. What the NBI did was just a part of investigative procedure,” he explained.

The NBI official said it was about 10 to 15 steps away from the gate to the doorsteps of Belo’s house.

Contado also confirmed that Palmer and Tamano even talked over the phone regarding the reason why they were in the place shortly after they arrived at Belo’s house around 5:15 p.m.

He said Tamano even assured the NBI of their full cooperation in the ongoing probe and would deliver the logbook to the NBI for examination. “At the time, the logbook is not at the guard house and Atty. Tamano told Palmer that it was with him (Tamano). But Atty. Tamano promised the bureau to deliver it so the investigators can examine it,” said Contado.

“What they submitted is a photocopy of one page containing entries that showed that businessman Eric Chua and a friend went to the place of Belo several months ago. So the NBI is also requesting the party (Belo) if they could see the original logbook and examine it. It also only procedural and Atty. Tamano said they would make all documents available to NBI for the speedy probe,” said Contado.

The NBI team is also requesting Tamano to let them see the laptop that supposedly contained the sex videos.

Still, Contado said NBI Director Nestor Mantaring has assured Tamano that he would look into their complaint against the NBI team.

Contado said the NBI is now halfway into the second phase of the probe to unmask the identity of those behind the upload of the sex video of Kho and Halili.

A complaint for alleged violation of RA 9262 (Anti-violence Against Women and Their Children Act) is already pending at the Department of Justice against Kho, Belo and three others for spread of the sex videos.