THE Cagayan de Oro City Police Office announced Wednesday, Oct. 15, that investigators have identified persons of interest in the killing of law graduate Niruh Kyle Antatico last week.
During the Cagayan de Oro Press Club’s weekly Meet the Press forum, Cocpo spokesperson Police Capt. Emelita Simon said law enforcement agencies formed the Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) Antatico on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
“We have established pieces of evidence and identified persons of interest. However, these persons are not necessarily suspects — they could be eyewitnesses,” Simon told reporters, adding that she could not release their names to avoid compromising the investigation.
Simon said the SITG Antatico includes the Philippine National Police, National Bureau of Investigation, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Northern Mindanao.
“We are currently backtracking the shooting incident. This is the most challenging phase of intelligence gathering. Effort gyud kaayo ni siya,” she said.
The “backtracking” phase, she explained, involves tracing the timeline of events, including when the assailants may have begun monitoring Antatico — from the time he left his residence to the scene of the crime in Barangay Patag.
“It’s all hands on deck. Everyone has been ordered to support the commander of Police Station 4,” Simon said.
The NIA-10 has offered a P100,000 reward for information that could lead to the identification of Antatico’s killers.
Simon also urged residents to take death threats seriously and to immediately report them to the police.
“Please report threats to the police. The police blotter is an official record that can be a big help in any investigation,” she said.
