EDITORIAL - Lost case

There can’t be any political motivation in this case, so the evidence must truly be insufficient for the extradition of Roger Lawrence Strunk. Yesterday a US court rejected the Philippine government’s request to have Strunk sent back to Manila for trial. Strunk, widower of murdered movie star Nida Blanca, left the Philippines for the United States on Jan. 10 last year for his mother’s funeral, promising to return to face accusations that he was behind the killing of his wife. No one believed he would return, and the Philippine government eventually had to seek his extradition.

Now the case appears headed for the dustbin of unsolved crimes. The court’s rejection is not entirely surprising, considering that the principal witness against Strunk is Philip Medel, a shady character in the same league as scam artist Ador Mawanay. Medel had confessed to the National Bureau of Investigation that he was hired by Strunk to kill the actress. Soon after, Medel was on TV having a convulsive fit, claiming he was tortured into confessing to the crime. The NBI said Medel’s original testimony remained valid despite his subsequent recantation. Other witnesses were eventually presented, corroborating the first story woven by Medel.

The story didn’t wash, as far as US Magistrate Gregory Hollows was concerned. When Manila had sought the extradition, Strunk was placed under provisional arrest last May 13 and detained at the Sacramento County Jail. With Hollows’ ruling, Strunk is expected to walk free soon.

What happens now to the two-year-old murder case? Prosecutors still have Medel, who will rot in prison in case enough witnesses are found to testify against him – that is, if none of the witnesses recants or follows Strunk and flees to the United States. That’s the greatest risk when crime investigators fail to do their homework and a case hinges on witnesses’ testimony. This case is lost. With no mastermind and the accused hired killer mentally unstable, the truth about Nida Blanca’s murder may never be known.