This, as he showed pieces of evidence, including footages from the CCTV inside the building.
Less than a week after the incident at the Senate complex on Wednesday, May 13, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla bared the findings of the ongoing investigation conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP).
At a press briefing, where he appeared together with PNP Chief PGen. Jose Melencio Nartatez, Jr., Remulla said that according to the evidence gathered so far, including closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage and sworn statements, showed one point.
It was a gun-related incident initiated by former police general and Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca and not an armed assault against the Senate institution.
Remulla noted the CCTV footage reviewed by investigators showed Aplasca firing the first shots toward National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents who were at the Senate premises to inspect the area, one that Aplasca confirmed previously in a live interview to be his “warning shot.”
The DILG chief also added that the same footage indicated that Aplasca directed the Office of the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms (OSAA) personnel, members of the PNP, and Marines to lock and load their firearms during the incident.
He, also, likewise greenlighted the media’s presence while the situation was unfolding.
Despite the evidence gathered and reviewed in recent days, Remulla emphasized that the PNP cannot yet conclude that the entire incident was staged or premeditated.
“We will let the evidence speak for itself. The investigation remains ongoing, and all angles will be examined carefully and fairly,” said Remulla.
Nartatez, meanwhile, confirmed that Aplasca had been directed to appear before the PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to surrender his firearm and undergo ballistic examination, but failed to do so.
As for Department of Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida, he told that the videos presented by the PNP are critical pieces of evidence in the ongoing investigation.
Vida added that all evidence gathered by the NBI and the PNP will be turned over to the panel of prosecutors for comprehensive evaluation and determination of possible liabilities.
Prior to this, Senate President Alan Oeter Cayetano claimed in a press briefing on Thursday, May 14, that the incident was due to an “attack” on the Senate.
Pounding the podium, he said in front of reporters, “But I don’t think there is any question (that) the Senate was under attack!”
Cayetano also denied circulating rumors that it was staged as a diversion to allow Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa, who is currently facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court, to flee the Senate.
“If it was a diversionary tactic, it would be crazy… When you did that, lalong dumami ‘yung tao dito, ‘yung pulis,” he told.