TANDAG CITY (MindaNews / 08 November) – The key whistleblower in the high-profile “missing sabungeros” (cockfighting enthusiasts) case, has come forward to deny accusations that he threatened News5 reporter Gary de Leon, calling the allegations “baseless” and “a smear meant to destroy my name.”
Julie Patidongan, who hails from Surigao del Sur, was reacting to several reports that the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) was conducting an investigation on his alleged death threat against de Leon.
“There is no truth to the allegations, I simply chose not to answer further questions and not give any statement about a case that is still being heard,” Patidongan said in an interview Friday.
In a phone interview, Undersecretary Jose Torres Jr., PTFoMS executive director said they haven’t received any complaints from de Leon.
“We are still waiting for Gary de Leon to contact us, so that we can initiate an investigation,” Torres said.
He said he has no idea where the reports came from that the task force was already investigating the alleged threat.
Reports said the controversy erupted on October 27, when de Leon contacted Patidongan and his lawyer to seek comments for a follow-up story. The conversation allegedly turned tense but Patidongan insisted there was “no threat at all.”
Patidongan added, “Di na sana ako sasagot. Mali na yung tinatanong niya, mali na yung gusto niyang palabasin. Gusto nila akong sirain!”
(Translation: I no longer wanted to answer. What he...
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