NBI hears from Tab; CIDG checks out drowning site
The National Bureau of Investigation intends to finish this week its probe of the deaths of Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) student-athletes Rene Clert “Bobet” Baterbonia and Chukwuemeka Divine Adili, as summoned school officials and other persons are expected to appear before the agency in the next few days.
On Tuesday afternoon, Tab Baldwin, the resigned head coach of the Ateneo men’s basketball team, went to the NBI to give his account on the drowning of rookie Baterbonia, 18, and Nigerian player Adili, 21, during a team-building activity at a beach resort in Dipaculao, Aurora, on June 8.
Baldwin declined to give a statement to reporters but his lawyer, Daniel Darvin, said his client complied with the subpoena “in the spirit of full cooperation” and “in order to shed light on the incidents of June 8.”
NBI Director Melvin Matibag said the bureau originally hoped to finish the investigation last Friday, but the other subpoenaed persons had yet to appear due to prior commitments.
“Hopefully we can finish by this week, depending on the schedule of people we are investigating. Of course, we also set a time frame to do this,” Matibag said.
The bureau had also finished the autopsy reports on the two victims and would be releasing them to their families, he said.
Crime scene reconstruction
Baldwin’s statements to the NBI would be compared with the testimony he earlier gave to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), which is conducting a parallel investigation, Matibag added.
Also on Tuesday, the CIDG focused on the Dipaculao resort where the Ateneo players and coaching staff stayed early this month for their team-building activity.
In a statement, the CIDG said its personnel, along with those of the Philippine National Police Forensic Group, the Aurora provincial police, the Central Luzon regional police and the local disaster management office had started to conduct a “crime scene reconstruction.”
The CIDG said the procedure would determine the sea conditions at the time of the incident; the distance from the waterline during high tide; the location of each player, coach and witness based on video footage and testimonies; and the distance from the shoreline and depth of the area where each player was situated.
The reconstruction used sonar to map underwater topography and depth, and 3D scanning “to capture highly accurate spatial data of the shoreline and scene, the CIDG said.
Investigators have also started “a thorough safety audit to validate the presence of warning signages and required emergency safety measures along the beachfront area,” it added.
At least 48 people had been subpoenaed for the investigation, according to the CIDG.
40-day mourning
Last week, some of the student-athletes and coaching staff present at the Dipaculao activity, including Baldwin, appeared before the CIDG.
In a June 22 memorandum, ADMU president Fr. Roberto Yap, SJ, asked students, faculty, staff, and the rest of the Ateneo community to observe a 40-day mourning for Baterbonia and Adili from June 8 to July 17.
“As we continue to grieve the tragic loss of our brothers, Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili, I invite the entire university community to join me in observing the 40-day period of mourning,” Yap wrote.
The university said the Ateneo flag would be flown at half-staff, while daily Masses would be offered at the College Chapel.
The university will also continue to drape campus fences with black cloth, and temper celebratory announcements and activities. —WITH A REPORT FROM ISABELLE PECHAY
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