The Philippine National Police (PNP) has confirmed that “Totoy,” the whistleblower in the case of the missing cockfighting enthusiasts or sabungeros, is currently under police protection.
“Si ‘Totoy’ nasa protective custody namin siya sa ngayon,” said PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III in a press briefing.
Torre added that the whistleblower is in the process of applying for inclusion in the Department of Justice’s Witness Protection Program.
“But he’s already applying for the Witness Protection Program dahil kapag siya ay nag-qualify i-turn over namin siya sa Department of Justice. Sa ngayon naman, madali na ‘yun. Na kay [Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin ‘Boying’ Remulla] na ang final say d’yan sa kaniyang protection,” he explained.
As for the 15 police officers recently implicated by the whistleblower in connection with the disappearances, Torre said they are currently under restrictive custody at Camp Crame in Quezon City.
“Marami sa kanila nasa support units. May mga nasa region. May mga nasa [area police commands]. Iba-ibang mga units sila. Lahat sila active except for one na due for retirement at tatlong dating na-dismiss,” he said, detailing the assignments of the officers.
According to Torre, seven of these officers had already been dismissed as early as January 2023 for their alleged involvement in the abductions.
He also revealed that some of the 15 officers were allegedly receiving as much as P2 million monthly in payola from businessman Atong Ang—one of the individuals named by the whistleblower as being behind the disappearances.
Torre said investigations are ongoing, with police now looking into additional individuals who may be linked to the case, as well as determining their locations.
Between 2021 and 2022, a total of 34 sabungeros were reported missing. Police believe the victims were kidnapped due to alleged cheating or match-fixing in cockfighting games.
The whistleblower claimed that the bodies of the missing individuals were buried in Taal Lake. However, Torre noted that police are also verifying reports of other “disposal areas,” including information that some of the victims may have been burned.