Philippine authorities say they have caught a main suspect in governor’s killing

Updated at 2:41 a.m. ET on 2023-04-04

Philippine police have arrested a main suspect who was instrumental in last month’s killing of a governor closely allied with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and who allegedly received orders from a congressman to carry out the plot, officials said Monday.

The latest arrest, of the suspect identified as Marvin Miranda, brings to 11 the number of suspects in custody in connection with the March 4 slaying of Roel Degamo, the governor of Negros Oriental province.

Miranda is believed to have been working for Congressman Arnolfo Teves, a political rival of Degamo who is suspected of being behind the attack that killed nine people including the governor. Teves is now at large overseas.

Military intelligence operatives worked with the police and the justice department to track down and capture Miranda on Friday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla told reporters on Monday.

The arrest, he said, marked “significant progress in finally putting this case to a close.” 

“[T]he NBI, together with the other elements of the task force, arrested Marvin Miranda, who we suspect is one of the masterminds in the murder,” Remulla said, referring to the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine version of the FBI in the United States.

Miranda is a military reservist, and some of those arrested earlier were also ex-soldiers, officials said. Investigators had said that the attack was carried out with military precision, and that the assailants were dressed in camouflage and armed with high-caliber weapons.

All of the suspects are in NBI custody and are being investigated or interrogated. Some of them have already been charged with murder for the killings and frustrated murder for the injuries sustained by 13 others.

Remulla described Miranda as “a major player and one of the masterminds” of the attack, the most brazen in recent years in the Southeast Asian nation where political warlords engage in deadly attacks against one another in a bid to establish their fiefdoms.

In the Philippines, it is not unusual for political families to settle differences through violence.  

Many politicians are also known to employ “private armies” both to augment personal security or to deter attacks against them.

“If you look at a movie as an analogy, Marvin was a director, producer of the props and casting director. He was the one who recruited people,” he said. “Congressman Teves was the producer or executive producer of the whole production. The only problem is, this is real, they murdered Gov. Degamo and eight others.”

The other suspects had also referred to Miranda during interrogation and said “he was the one talking to people, gathering firearms (and) planning movements,” Remulla said.

He said the motive was a political rivalry between Degamo and Teves that got out of hand.

Teves has denied involvement in the killing, even as he acknowledged that he knew he would be suspected of having a hand in it because he was Degamo’s rival in local politics in Negros Oriental. He left for the United States days before the attack and has not returned to the Philippines despite appeals by his relatives to come home and clear his name.

But on Monday, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr. said that Miranda had referred to a certain “big boss” or “boss idol” in talking about Teves. 

That person “was the one who recruited them and the person who provided logistical and material support during the planning and execution of the assassination plan of Gov. Degamo," he said.

Records show that Miranda was a long-time bodyguard of Teves who has a criminal record as well. In 2020, Miranda was arrested and spent some time in jail for illegal possession of firearms, the interior department said.

“We are now at the tail-end for our quest for justice and hunt for the masterminds behind the death of Gov. Degamo and eight others and the wounding of many more victims,” Abalos said.

“We are certain that the pieces of the puzzle are almost complete and we can clearly picture out what transpired before, during and after the brazen attack,” he said.

President Marcos, a political ally of the slain governor who has been closely following the investigation, last month called on Teves to return home and assured him of his safety.

“You're rich, you have a private jet, you can land anywhere you want. We will have soldiers surround the area, no one else can come near within a kilometer radius. That will guarantee his security,” Marcos had said.

“The only advice I can give to … Arnie is that the longer it takes for you to come home, the harder your situation gets. If you return early, there will be more options for you. But if it's too late, the government will be forced to move without any discussions with you,” the president said.

Jeoffrey Maitem contributed to this report from Davao City, southern Philippines. 

This report has been updated to change the main photo.