(Eagle News) — Two witnesses in the death of Horacio Castillo III have surfaced and expressed willingness to share information with authorities, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said.
In a radio interview on Friday, Aguirre said the two “went straight” to him to seek his help.
He said the first–who “knows something”—went to see him at the DOJ office, while the other–“an eyewitness who was involved”–left a contact number where he could be reached.
Only one of the witnesses is reportedly a member of the Aegis Juris fraternity, which is believed to have held the hazing rites where Castillo sustained injuries that caused a massive trauma that led to a heart attack.
The justice secretary did not reveal anything about what the witnesses said, though, noting that the information was “confidential” and the case was still under investigation.
As a matter of fact, he said the witnesses have yet to go through the National Bureau of Investigation.
“Pag nilabas natin (ang sinabi) this will serve as an alarm to the others,” he said.
He noted that the witnesses have received threats and “fear for their lives.”
He said the NBI would take over from there.
“Sa NBI na ang tutuluyan nito kasi sila ang may kakayahang mag-imbestiga,” he said.
The police have so far identified three primary suspects in the death of Castillo over the weekend.
John Paul Solano was named a primary suspect after police said they found he deliberately fed false information to investigators to mislead them.
Solano earlier claimed he found Castillo’s body on a pavement in Tondo, Manila, but barangay officials disputed his account, noting that there was no body at the time he claimed he made the discovery, based on footage from a closed-circuit television camera there.
Also named primary suspects were Anthony Trangia–the registered owner of the vehicle that took Castillo to the Chinese General Hospital—and his son, Ralph, an official of the fraternity.
The Bureau of Immigration said the younger Trangia left the country on Sept. 19.