Aguirre transfers Caloocan fiscal to Mandaluyong

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday ordered the transfer of Caloocan City Senior Assistant Prosecutor Darwin Cañete to Mandaluyong City. (PNA PHOTO)

MANILA — Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Wednesday ordered the transfer of Caloocan City Senior Assistant Prosecutor Darwin Cañete to Mandaluyong City.

Cañete earlier drew flak over his controversial comment in social media in connection with the case of Grade 11 student Kian Loyd Delos Santos who was killed in the August 16 anti-drug operations in Caloocan.

“In the interest of the service and pursuant to the provisions of existing laws, Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Darwin G. Canete…is hereby re-assigned to the Office of the City Prosecutor of Mandaluyong City,” read Aguirre’s department order 558 dated Aug. 29, 2017.

Aguirre said Cañete requested to be transferred after receiving death threats.

“Tumawag sa akin ‘yung si piskal Cañete na parang may threat sa kanya. We will do that and I believe na mayroong katwiran siya, may basis. So what I did is that my (Undersecretary) confirmed with him and I think the best na magagawa namin in the meantime is i-reassign siya para hindi masyadong mainit dun sa kanyang place of assignment (Fiscal Cañete called me and said there is a threat against him. We will do that and I believe he has a point. There is a basis for that. So what I did is that my (Undersecretary) confirmed with him and I think the best that we can do in the meantime is to re-assign him because the situation is not good in his place of assignment),” Aguirre told reporters in a chance interview on Wednesday.

Aguirre’s order came after he issued a statement saying that the Caloocan Prosecutors’ Office will handle the preliminary investigation on the murder and torture complaint filed against the police officers involved in the incident.