MALAYBALAY CITY (MindaNews / 16 Jan) – Only 38 of the 184 pending murder cases in Bukidnon have been filed in court, the police said.
Senior Supt. Glenn dela Torre, Bukidnon police director, told the Provincial Peace and Order Council meeting last week that the 146 cases are considered still under investigation. Chief Insp. Rene Berico, spokesperson of the Bukidnon provincial police office, said this means the suspects are still unidentified or at large.
Dela Torre said that so far, only 30 of the 184 suspects have been arrested.
In his presentation, Dela Torre said there actually 230 murder cases in 2013, but 46 of which were already resolved, or already with court decision, or amicably settled.
Berico said the 146 cases under investigation are cases where the suspects are unidentified or at large.
Murder was the fifth highest crime type in volume in the province last year. It was even higher in 2012 with 244 cases.
Bukidnon Gov. Jose Ma. R. Zubiri Jr. earlier said the P2-million anti-crime bounty he allotted starting 2014 is intended to reduce criminality in the province. In an earlier statement following the slaying of radio commentator Joash Dignos in November, the first in Bukidnon, Zubiri vowed to cut the number of murder incidents and other crimes in the province.
Zubiri said the province will give a reward of P20,000 for the conviction of a case in murder, homicide, parricide, kidnapping, rape, robbery, and other cases classified under “index crimes.” Each of the informer and the witness in the case will also receive P6,000.
He said eyewitness will be rewarded with “not less than P100,000 for grave offenses and high profile cases.”
The governor added they will give P5,000 for a police unit that can seize 0.001-1 gram of illegal drugs. Informers and witnesses will also receive P2,000 each.
He vowed to give full support to the city and municipal police stations but warned police chiefs he would lobby for their replacement if they could not produce results.