An active officer of the Philippine National Police has confessed to planning the assassination of the corporate secretary of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office in July 2020, allegedly upon the instigation of high-ranking former police officials closely identified with former President Rodrigo R. Duterte.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Santie Mendoza, currently working at the headquarters of the Drug Enforcement Group of the PNP, appeared before the quad committees of the House of Representatives this Friday and admitted that he had conspired to kill retired police general Wesley Barayuga upon the instructions of National Police Commission member Edilberto Leonardo, supposedly upon the behest of Royina Garma, who was General Manager of the PCSO at the time.
CCTV footage recorded on July 30, 2020, shows Barayuga’s vehicle traversing a street near the PCSO main office in Mandaluyong City and getting approached from behind by a motorcycle-riding gunman. The gunman took out a pistol and fired several shots at the white pickup truck transporting the victim and his driver.
Barayuga, who was also a lawyer, died instantly from gunshot wounds to the head and the body.
“Special Project”
Lt. Col. Mendoza narrated that sometime in October 2019 Leonardo contacted him on a “special project” to eliminate a “high-value individual involved in drugs.” Leonardo also told Mendoza to “be ready” to implement the project upon his go-signal and strongly implied that the success or failure of the operation would dictate the direction of his career.
In February 2020 Leonardo followed up on the plan and added details including a synopsis that detailed Barayuga’s alleged involvement in illegal drugs. Mendoza quoted Leonardo as saying that the directive to kill Barayuga came from Garma herself.
Acting on the pressure, Mendoza said he started getting ready and recruited Nelson Mariano, his informant in drug operations whom he knew to have an extensive network with trained assassins. He relayed the details to Mariano, who also appeared in Congress and corroborated Mendoza’s statement.
Mendoza said the project got snagged by the lockdown in Metro Manila due to the Covid pandemic. Still, Leonardo contacted him again in June 2020 to emphasize the gravity and urgency of the operations. He again discussed the plan with Mariano who then agreed to implement the assassination of Barayuga through a skilled hitman.
The prize money
Mendoza said security personnel in Garma’s group called “Toks” would contact them to give further details on the target. Alias “Toks” is allegedly Garma’s contact in the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group.
Mariano reported that he was able to contact an efficient hitman called “Loloy” who agreed to kill Barayuga for 200 thousand pesos. Mendoza instructed Mariano to get in touch with Toks who would be providing details of Barayuga’s movements.
It was Leonardo who contacted Mendoza to relay information that Barayuga was on the premises of the PCSO on July 30, 2020, and the “project” could already be implemented. He was sent a picture of Barayuga taken during a meeting, which Garma sent to Leonardo. The details of the PCSO vehicle issued to Barayuga were also relayed to him.
Mendoza admitted having received 40 thousand pesos after the operation while Mariano received 60 thousand pesos. Toks gave the money to Mariano.
Rep. Johnny Pimentel said that Toks is a “driver security” still employed with the PCSO.
“There was an ongoing NBI investigation on small town lottery and Barayuga was ready to testify according to Eric Distor of the NBI,” said Pimentel.
Mendoza said that he feared not acceding to Leonardo whom he described as notorious in the
Davao region as a handler of hitmen.
Pimentel added that a prosecution for murder against those involved in Barayuga’s murder will form part of the Quadcomm report.
According to the CIDG, Barayuga’s assassination has officially become a “cold case” as no criminal complaint has been filed against the malefactors. The police are “waiting for new evidence to surface”
Garma denied knowing Mendoza, asserting that her relationship with Barayuga was regular and cordial. Leonardo also denied involvement in the assassination, and that he knows Mendoza only as an underclass in the PNPA.