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A MAIN participant behind the killing of Negros Oriental’s governor and 26 other victims has been arrested, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Monday. 

“In our continuing pursuit operations, the special task force formed has arrested what it considers the missing vital link and one of the main conspirators behind Governor Roel R. Degamo’s murder,” Interior Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos told a livestreamed news briefing. 

He said other arrested suspects, who are former military officers, told authorities the man recruited them upon the instructions of a mastermind.  

The alleged recruiter is now under the National Bureau of Investigation’s custody. 

Mr. Abalos said there are currently 12 suspects under police custody, adding that the DILG and the Department of Justice are close to solving the case. 

At the same briefing, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla said suspects will be charged with illegal possession of guns and explosives before the Provincial Prosecutor of Negros Oriental and the Office of the Prosecutor General.  

He added that Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo “Arnie” A. Teves, Jr. could still be one of the masterminds due to his political rivalry with the late governor.  

The congressman has denied involvement in the crime and cited threats against him and his family for refusing to return to the country. He has been slapped with a 60-day suspension by the House of Representatives for failing to report back to work after his travel authority expired on March 9.    

The late governor and eight others, including two village leaders, were killed while 15 were wounded when armed men opened fire in his residential compound, where cash aid was being distributed on March 4.    

The interior secretary earlier said that 30 complaints related to the killing have been filed before a Bayawan City regional trial court.   

The Supreme Court had transferred the cases related to the murder following Mr. Remulla’s request to move them to Manila, citing a potential hostile environment in the province for those involved.  

“We are now at the tail-end of our quest for justice and hunt for the masterminds behind the death of Gov. Degamo and eight others, and the wounding of many more victims,” Mr. Abalos said. — John Victor D. Ordoñez

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