Lookout order out vs suspect in Cebu road rage shooting

The Department of Justice (DOJ) ordered the issuance of an immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) against David Go Lim Jr., the primary suspect in a road rage shooting incident in Cebu. (Photo: President Rodrigo Duterte Supporters/Facebook)

MANILA—The Department of Justice (DOJ) ordered the issuance of an immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) against David Go Lim Jr., the primary suspect in a road rage shooting incident in Cebu.

In a memorandum dated March 20, DOJ Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II ordered Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente to instruct all immigration officers in the country’s airports and seaports to be on the lookout to prevent attempts of the latter to leave the country.

Aguirre signed an ILBO against Lim upon the request of Special Assistant to the President for the Visayas Michael Dino.

Lim was tagged by the victim Ephraim Montalbo Nunal as the primary suspect in a shooting incident arising from a traffic altercation along F. Sotto., Brgy. Kamputhaw, Cebu City last March 19.

“We issued the ILBO to curtail any efforts on the part of Mr. David Go Lim Jr., or those trying to protect him, to evade any responsibility from the shooting incident. If he committed the act attributed to him by the victim, then he should squarely face the charges against him,” Aguirre said in statement.

Aside from the Bureau of Immigration, a copy of the order was furnished to the Philippine National Police (PNP). It directs the BI to coordinate with the PNP particularly in Cebu to obtain additional information about the subject of this order in order to facilitate its enforcement.

An ILBO is different from a court-issued hold departure order (HDO) since the former only directs the BI to be on the lookout for the subject and to verify the status of a case against the subject person and not to restrict an individual from leaving the country.

But a person subject to the ILBO should seek an Allow Departure Order (ADO) from the DOJ chief to be allowed to leave.

In a statement, the Supreme Court (SC) said there is no arrest order released against Lim as there are no charges filed against him.

“As per information of the Executive Judge (EJ) Gilbert Moises of the Regional Trial Court of Cebu City, no court has issued a warrant of arrest against Mr. (David Go) Lim because there is no case filed before the courts. Neither has there been an application for a search warrant filed. As per the EJ, the office of the Mayor bas not contacted any of the judges regarding this matter,” the SC said.