(Eagle News)–Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Thursday, May 2, said the National Bureau of Investigation was finalizing the charges to be filed against the man who allegedly published the videos linking members of President Rodrigo Duterte’s family to the illegal drug trade in an online site.
According to Guevarra, apart from the charges for violation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act, Rodel Jayme can face charges for violation of the Anti-Child Abuse law and “possibly even a higher type” of charge depending on the National Prosecution Office’s evaluation.
Guevarra said Jayme was arrested after an NBI forensic examination conducted on his desktop computer, mobile phones, ISP billing statements, among others showed he was the registrant and the administrator of the website metrobalita.net, which first carried the “Ang Totoong Narco-list” videos, and was the one who “published the link which facilitated the circulation” of the videos.
Guevarra said the devices had been the subject of a search warrant issued by Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 148 Judge Andres Soriano, whose sala received the NBI’s application for the same on April 29.
Guevarra said Jayme had voluntarily gone to the NBI headquarters to clarify issues prior to his arrest, and had also voluntarily surrendered his devices and billing statements to the NBI agents who had gone to his residence to implement the search warrant on April 30, around 4 a.m.
“I will leave the determination of probable cause to the sound judgement of the prosecutors..,” Guevarra said.
Asked if Jayme was also the “Bikoy” who was speaking in the videos, Guevarra said “We do not know as of this time the identity of ‘Bikoy’.”
He also shunned questions about Jayme’s affiliation.
“We are investigating the possible commission of an offense. We are not delving into any political issues here,” Guevarra said.
A check of Jayme’s Twitter account showed however that he identified himself as a blogger, gamer and a licensed amateur radio operator.
According to Guevarra, the authorities were also looking at other persons of interest, with the NBI saying other websites were also being looked into.
In the videos, the man who identified himself as “Bikoy” accused presidential son Paolo Duterte of receiving kickbacks from the illegal drug trade through alleged bank accounts owned by Waldo Carpio, brother of the President’s son-in-law Mans Carpio.
“Bikoy” also accused the President’s teenage daughter Veronica of being engaged in illegal drug activities.
Members of the presidential family have denied all allegations. With a report from Moira Encina
