Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has flagged a possible connection between the bloody drug war and the unresolved disappearances tied to the e-sabong (online cockfighting) industry, saying some perpetrators may be common to both.
“There was one incident where we were able to connect the cases,” Remulla revealed on Monday, referring to an arrest in Meycauayan where suspects involved in illegal drugs were also allegedly tied to e-sabong operations.
In a chilling detail, Remulla shared that the partner of an e-sabong agent had been abducted by individuals posing as police officers—allegedly working with drug-linked siblings. The case, he said, has been marred by interference from certain personalities attempting to influence the legal process.
“There are people involved in the killings in both the drug war and e-sabong,” Remulla said in an Inquirer.net report, noting that those who carry out contract killings—so-called death squads—may have had roles in both criminal activities. Still, he admitted that while overlapping patterns are emerging, conclusive links have yet to be established.
“That’s [as] far as we can trace right now, but we will have [to] establish clearer links to each other,” he added.
The Department of Justice has also been coordinating with the Philippine Coast Guard in the search for the 34 e-sabong agents who vanished nearly three years ago. The PNP’s forensic team recently reported that recovered sacks from Taal Lake contained a mixture of human and animal remains.
Remulla remains convinced that the truth behind the disappearances is more sinister than initially assumed. “I believe there’s more to this than meets the eye,” he said. “It’s about time the demons behind these crimes are unmasked.”
Under Remulla’s leadership, close to 50 divers have been deployed to comb the depths of Taal Lake—signaling the government’s intensified resolve to break the silence surrounding one of the country’s most haunting unsolved cases.
