The Philippine National Police (PNP) has expressed confidence that its Forensic Group can help resolve the long-running case of the missing sabungeros following the recovery of skeletal remains from Taal Lake in Batangas.
PNP Chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the scale of the evidence requires extensive scientific examination, but assured the families of the missing cockfight enthusiasts that the police organization is committed to pursuing the truth.
“Identifying over a thousand bone fragments is undeniably a tall order for our forensic teams, but I have absolute confidence in the expertise and capability of the PNP Forensic Group,” Nartatez said.
The PNP earlier said around 1,400 of roughly 2,000 bone fragments recovered from Taal Lake had been identified as human remains.
The remains are being examined as part of the continuing investigation into the disappearance of several cockfight enthusiasts, a case that has remained unresolved for years.
Nartatez said he has ordered the Forensic Group to deploy specialized personnel and use available DNA technology to speed up the examination of the recovered remains.
He also directed PNP units in Calabarzon to secure the recovery site to prevent any evidence from being compromised.
All recovered bones are undergoing medico-legal, anthropological, radiographic imaging, dental, and DNA examinations.
The Forensic Group has yet to confirm whether the DNA profiles from the remains match any of the reported missing sabungeros.
Investigators said the process remains difficult because of environmental conditions in Taal Lake, including sulfuric acid, high temperatures, and mineral content that may have degraded the evidence.
Nartatez acknowledged the anguish of the families who have waited years for answers, but said the police would carefully process every fragment to determine whether the remains are connected to the missing sabungeros case.
“We recognize the immense anxiety this news brings to the families who have waited years for answers, and while the scientific process ahead is deeply complex, our commitment to you remains unshakeable,” he said.
“The PNP has the technical capability and the resolve to see this through. We will meticulously process every single fragment to give you the definitive truth and the justice that has been delayed for far too long,” he added.