Journalist Philip Lustre Jr., author of book on Duterte drug war, arrested for alleged cyberlibel

Longtime journalist Philip Lustre Jr. was arrested by police officers in Quezon City on Saturday morning by virtue of a warrant of arrest for cyberlibel issued by a Davao court.

The arrest was conducted minutes after the Saturday News Forum was held at a restaurant. Police officers read to Lustre his Miranda rights.

Lustre, author of the book titled "Kill, Kill, Kill" which is about the Duterte drug war, said he is not aware of any complaint lodged against him.

Atty. Dino De Leon, who was a guest in the news conference, will now stand as his legal counsel.

De Leon said they will post bail and appeal for humanitarian consideration since Lustre is a senior citizen.

They also plan to file a motion to quash, which seeks to declare as null or invalid the arrest order.

"Ilalaban ko ito. Hindi ko uurungan ito (I will fight this. I will not back down)," Lustre said. —KG, GMA News