Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida said Wednesday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) could not confirm reports that fugitive businessman Charlie “Atong” Ang had escaped the Philippines, citing the absence of any departure record from the Bureau of Immigration (BI).
Vida's statement came after Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla claimed Tuesday that Ang had fled the country through an unofficial exit route, commonly known as a “backdoor.”
“So I cannot confirm that he is already out of the country kasi we will rely based on what we have on immigration records. And based on immigration records, wala kaming record that he left,” Vida said.
The Justice secretary said he was unaware of the source of Remulla's information.
Ang, who has been accused of masterminding the disappearance of several cockfighting enthusiasts, or sabungeros, remains at large despite an active, non-bailable arrest warrant issued by the Laguna Regional Trial Court Branch 26.
All 17 of his co-accused have reportedly been arrested.
Ang faces charges of kidnapping with homicide and kidnapping and serious illegal detention before courts in Santa Cruz and San Pablo, Laguna, and Lipa City, Batangas.
Authorities are also taking steps to cancel his passport to prevent him from traveling legally.
Despite the difficulty of locating Ang, Vida assured the public that prosecutors would continue pursuing the cases.
“Because of the nature of the case, these are murder cases, no, we pursue our mandate. Our prosecutors pursue trying the case. We continue to present the relevant pieces of evidence that we can before the court,” he said.
“Although we see these as challenges, we don’t see this as fatal to the case. We still continue with the prosecution of the case.”
The DOJ maintained that the absence of an immigration departure record does not establish Ang's whereabouts, particularly amid allegations that he may have left through an unofficial route.
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