Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) chief Police Major Gen. Nicolas Torre III on Sunday urged vlogger Jun Abines to sign a counter-affidavit and outline any alleged irregularities in the execution of a search warrant targeting his devices.
The search warrant was issued in connection with a complaint filed by Torre with the Anti-Cybercrime Group, accusing Abines of posting an allegation that the CIDG chief was in the hospital.
In his Facebook post, Abine asked if it was true that Torre was rushed to the hospital due to serious illness. Instead of properly attributing the photo to its owner, he labeled it with "CTTO," (credits to the owner), implying that he did not know who had taken the photo.
“Ano kaya sakit niya? Mukhang malala. Padalhan kaya siya ng bulaklak ng Malakanyang? O baka KOJC pa mauna mah pray para sa kanya at magpadala ng bulaklak (What could be his illness? It looks serious. I wonder if Malacañang will send him flowers? Or maybe KOJC will be the first to pray for him and send flowers),” he wrote in his social media post.
Abines also advised Torre to be humble and respectful.
In a separate post on Saturday, Abines alleged that during an operation, police officers seized his laptops and phones and prevented him from closing his bank and personal accounts on his devices.
“I believe they have illegally tampered with my cellphone which was supposed to be the ‘evidence’ and subject of the search warrant. I insisted they do the search with my lawyer but they ignored me. They did not preserve the evidence of search,” he wrote in a post.
In response, Torre said he would only address Abines’ claims if the latter will submit a signed statement about what he witnessed during the operation at midnight on Saturday.
"Ang problema sa mga vloggers na ito, daldal nang daldal, ayaw naman isulat, ayaw naman pirmahan. Para masagot natin nang maayos (The problem with these vloggers is they talk so much, but they don’t want to write it down or sign it. That way, we can properly respond to the allegation) I don't want to dignify those kinds of accusations,” the CIDG chief stressed.
He noted the Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) was examining Abines' Abines' devices for evidence, which will be used in a complaint to be filed in the coming days.
Torre filed a complaint against Abines before the ACG in his personal capacity, stressing the misinformation allegedly spread by the social media personality online caused distress to his family and friends regarding his health.
“Ang cybercrime ang nag-file ng kaso at nag-serve ng search warrant, at nag-implement ng search warrant laban sa kanya. Kasinungalingan nanaman (It was Cybercrime that filed the case and that served and implemented the search warrant against him. Another lie),” he said.
Torre believes he became the target of an online attack due to the search operations conducted at the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) last year, which led to the surrender of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, who had pending warrants for trafficking and abuse charges.
In addition to the false claims about his hospitalization, Torre mentioned that materials labeling him as the “Most Hated Man in the Philippines” and other photos continued to circulate on social media.
“If I respond, they might say it was just a joke or that they were misinterpreted. Let’s see if he’s willing to put it in writing and sign it. The problem with these people is they never take responsibility. They talk a lot, but when you bring them to court, they back out,” he said.