No tips yet on Bantag despite reward

MANILA, Philippines — The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has not received any tips on the whereabouts of fugitives Gerald Bantag and Ricardo Zulueta despite a P3-million bounty on their heads.

NCRPO chief Maj. Gen. Edgar Alan Okubo said the agency continues to deploy tracker teams and are monitoring Bantag’s and Zulueta’s addresses.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) earlier announced a P2-million bounty for former Bureau of Corrections
 (BuCor) chief Bantag and a P1-million bounty for BuCor security officer Zulueta, who are wanted for the killing of radio broadcaster Percy Lapid and Cristito Palana Villamor, an inmate of the new Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City.

Villamor was the alleged middleman who hired self-confessed gunman Joel Escorial to kill Lapid.

“Our tracker teams have no reported tips yet. Nevertheless, we are hoping that the rewards will have results. It will be helpful,” Okubo told The STAR yesterday.

He said the bounty would help hasten the capture of the two fugitives since it will mean a “whole-of-nation” approach in the manhunt as it will “add to the chance for them to give information about their whereabouts.”

Okubo assured the public that the NCRPO will validate all information brought to the police.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said they decided to open the manhunt to the public to increase the chances of capturing the two fugitives, noting that both of them are still in the country, particularly in Luzon.

The DOJ, through the Bureau of Immigration, has issued hold departure orders against Bantag and Zulueta to prevent them from fleeing the country.

Bantag had signified his intention to surrender twice in the last two months, but he never turned up to face the charges.

No cohorts

Okubo yesterday said he is confident that Bantag has no cohorts in the police force who may be helping him evade arrest.

He said speculations that Bantag has someone in the police force helping him has “no basis.”

“If there is information about that, we will validate it  but we believe in the professionalism and integrity of the Philippine National Police (PNP),” he told The STAR yesterday.

He also revealed that movements and plans of its manhunt team are “compartmentalized” and its members are selected, meaning it would be difficult for any police personnel to inform Bantag and help him hide from authorities.

The DOJ earlier claimed Bantag has been receiving tips that have helped him evade authorities’ leads on his whereabouts, citing the former BuCor chief’s alleged “network” within the police force and in other law enforcement agencies.

The PNP has since refuted this claim, saying that Bantag was never a police officer.

Lapid was gunned down in Las Piñas City in October 2022. Escorial then surrendered to authorities and implicated his companions who allegedly took part in the killing, including Villamor, who died while inside the NBP.