The Justice Department has filed murder charges against suspended Bureau of Corrections Chief Gerald Bantag and former deputy security officer Ricardo Zulueta over the killing of broadcaster Percy Lapid and middleman Jun Villamor.
DOJ spokesperson Mico Clavano said that the case has been filed before the Las Piñas Regional Trial Court on Tuesday.
The prosecutors said that the death of Villamor was intertwined with the death of Lapid and that it was used to cover up Lapid’s death.
In a statement, the DOJ said that there is “sufficient circumstantial evidence has been presented to establish that he masterminded the assassination” of Lapid, whose real name is Percival Mabasa.
Bantag’s camp said that they will file the necessary counter pleadings over the charges filed by the DOJ.
Lapid was shot dead in Las PInas in October 2022. Villamor on the other hand died days after. Forensic investigation showed that Villamor died from suffocation while inside the New Bilibid Prison.
