Aguirre re-assigns prosecutor who made prejudiced comments against Kian

Due to possible threats, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II has re-assigned a Caloocan City prosecutor who has been criticized for allegedly making prejudiced comments against slain Grade 11 student Kian Loyd delos Santos.

Aguirre has issued Department Order 558 dated August 29 which re-assigned Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Darwin Canete to the Mandaluyong City Prosecutors Office.

“Parang may threat sa kanya (There seems to be threats against him),” Aguirre told reporters yesterday.

“I think the best magagawa namin in the meantime is ireassign siya para hindi masyadong mainit doon sa kanyang place of assignment (I think it would be best to re-assign him so as to take off the heat from him in his place of assignment),” he said.

The Secretary admitted he had considered assigning Canete to the main office of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“Pero ang problema baka magkaron naman ng objection ang ibang senador (The problem is it might be opposed by some senators),” he said.

Earlier, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon called on Aguirre to remove Canete from handling the case of Delos Santos for saying that the 17-year-old teen was not totally innocent in the illegal drugs trade.

“I simply cannot order the relief of Prosecutor Darwin Canete from the case Kian De Los Santos. In the first place he is not handling the case. No case has yet been filed,” Aguirre had previously explained.

The Secretary said “for cases of death under investigation in Caloocan, he is tasked to gather the relevant factual antecedents of such cases upon the invitation of the police.”

Once criminal complaints against policemen involved in the death of Delos Santos, the Secretary said the case is raffled among prosecutors.

“And Prosecutor Darwin Canete, the one who gathered the facts of such a case, is no longer included in the raffle of the case,” Aguirre assured.

The parents of Delos Santos have already filed before the DOJ murder and torture complaints against the policemen tagged in the killing.