By Benjamin Pulta
MANILA – The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday said it would work with foreign counterparts to go after Dalia Pastor, the wife and suspect in the killing of slain race car driver Ferdinand “Enzo” Pastor.
In a statement, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla said the government would not take reports that Pastor has already fled the country to Indonesia or Malaysia “sitting down.”
“The wheels of justice will not remain idle or passive now that the High Court has passed down its judgment, the DOJ will join our partner agencies in hunting down the mastermind of Enzo Pastor’s murder,” Remulla said.
“We will also be working with our international counterparts to track down and extradite Dalia as soon as possible. Ten years have passed and this is the time to prove that the present administration will do whatever it takes to get the job done at all costs.”
The Supreme Court (SC) earlier reinstated the arrest warrant and hold departure order (HDO) against Dalia, as a co-conspirator in the killing of her husband.
Records showed that in 2014, Enzo was driving a truck to Clark, Pampanga, together with his mechanic, Paolo Salazar. After the truck came to a stop at the intersection of Visayas Avenue and Congressional Avenue, a man approached the driver’s side of the truck and shot Enzo, killing him.
The prosecution charged Police Officer 2 Edgar Angel, as the gunman, and Domingo De Guzman III and Dalia as masterminds in the killing. Angel and De Guzman were arrested.
Dalia went to the CA to question the charges against her.
The CA ruled in Dalia’s favor and dismissed the charge of parricide for lack of probable cause after Angel failed to identify her as the mastermind of the plot to kill her husband.
In reversing the CA decision, the Supreme Court ruled that a finding of probable cause needs only evidence showing that, more likely than not, a crime has been committed by the suspects.
The Supreme Court said there was sufficient evidence that identified Dalia as a co-conspirator and her participation in Enzo’s killing. (PNA)