Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Director-General Wilkins Villanueva has directed the creation of a special investigation task group to find Agent 1 Merton T. Fesway, who was reportedly abducted in Angeles City, Pampanga on June 25.
The creation of a team came more than a month after the family of Fesway, 38, of Bontoc, Mountain Province appealed to PDEA and other law enforcement agencies to investigate the reported abduction of the PDEA agent by supposed State forces.
PDEA Chief Information Officer Derrick Carreon said Villanueva directed Task Force Fesway, a 24-man intelligence and investigation team, to expedite the search.
The PDEA-Region 3 office has not yet released any official statement as regards its efforts to find Fesway after a delegate from Bontoc travelled to Central Luzon to seek for assistance from the office, including the office of Angeles City mayor and National Bureau of Investigation-Region 3.
NBI-Region 3 earlier vowed to conduct a parallel investigation on the reported abduction of Fesway, who was part of the series of anti-illegal drugs operations in Pampanga the past years. The bureau has not released an updated report.
On the day of his reported abduction, Fesway left the PDEA office alone on June 25 while his officemates were at the PDEA regional office in City of San Fernando, Pampanga to attend the office anniversary that day.
The Public Attorney’s Office, which extended assistance to the family of Fesway during the initial search, reported all police stations in Angeles City, including the Angeles City Drug Enforcement Unit, and Mabalacat and Dau police stations, informed the missing agent is not in their custody.
The Angeles City Prosecutor’s Office also informed the PAO that no case was filed against Fesway from the date of his abduction up to present.
Aside from Fesway, three Baguio residents, namely Jeffrey Casampol, Bernardino Culala, and Mark Wilson Agustin, who were supposed to meet the missing PDEA agent in Angeles on June 25, are also missing.
The colored white Toyota GL Hi-ace van with license plate CBF 8042 used by the three missing Baguio residents when they traveled to Angeles is also missing.
Another former PDEA agent named “Regie” alias Pinto, who informed Fesway’s common-law-wife that something wrong has happened to the PDEA agent, has also disappeared.
Those who have any information regarding the possible whereabouts of Fesway may contact 0995-354-7020 or 0931-027-8212. – Harley F. Palangchao
April 23, 2024
