| 2021–2022 Luzon sabungero disappearances | |
| Date: | April 2021 – January 2022 |
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| Reported Missing: | 34 |
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Between April 2021 and January 2022, 34 cockfight enthusiasts (locally called sabungeros) from areas of Luzon, Philippines, went missing.[1] Of the missing, 19 are from Laguna, six are from Manila, six are from Batangas, and two are from Bulacan. One of the sabungeros from Laguna was confirmed to have been kidnapped.[2]
The first documented disappearance was on April 28, 2021, when two men were seen escorting Michael Bautista in handcuffs in Santa Cruz, Laguna.[3] A cellphone video recorded on May 11, 2021 showed two cockfight enthusiasts before their disappearances in Santa Cruz.[4] CCTV footage dated August 30, 2021 showed a group of men storming the house of 48-year-old Ricardo Lasco in San Pablo, Laguna. Several minutes later, Lasco was escorted out of the house with a box reportedly containing jewelry, watches, and money. Lasco has not been seen since. According to his relatives, he was a chicken breeder and a "master agent" of online cockfighting (known locally as e-sabong).[5]
On January 5, 2022, Jeffrey and Nomer Depano of Hagonoy, Bulacan, failed to return home after a cockfight in Lipa, Batangas. Their van was found abandoned two days later, near a bridge along the MacArthur Highway, with their clothes inside. According to their parents, Jeffrey was brought by Nomer due to a lack of players at the event and had no previous experience in cockfighting.[6] On January 6 in Hagonoy, Edgar Malaca, Alexander Quijano, and Atong Sacdalan were reported missing after telling their families that they were going to Lipa for an online sabong event.[7]
On January 13, 2022, four cockfighting players went missing from the Manila Arena;[8] six more players from the same area followed.[9] CCTV footage from that day showed a convoy of vehicles driving away from the arena in Santa Ana, Manila. One vehicle in the convoy was a Toyota Tamaraw FX driven by the neighbors of a cockfight player who went missing in Rizal. The FX stopped at Osmeña Highway, where an unknown man was seen getting out of the car and getting into the tailing car.[10] A day after the disappearances of some of the cockfight players in Laguna, an unidentified man was captured on CCTV withdrawing money using an ATM card belonging to one of the disappeared people. The wife of the ATM card owner said that over was stolen from her husband's ATM card. A concerned person offered a reward of for anyone who could provide the man's identity.[11]
The disappearances were first reported by the news media on January 18, 2022.[12]
A luxury car used to transport cockfight enthusiasts was found abandoned on February 4, 2022 at a restaurant in Malate, Manila. The car reportedly still had its engine running. Police investigators looked into the incident as a possible kidnapping but could not find any evidence.
On February 8, 2022, the Philippine National Police said they had identified a number of persons of interest in connection to the missing cockfight enthusiasts. The police said that investigators talked to the cockfight arena managers and security guards and were eyeing match fixing and double-crossing[5] as potential causes of the disappearances.[13]
On February 17, Department of Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate the disappearance of over 20 sabungeros.[14] The Philippine Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, chaired by Senator Ronald dela Rosa, filed Senate Resolution No. 996 on February 28;[15] the resolution urged the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to suspend the operation of e-sabong.[16]
On February 25, Facebook posts appeared online showing pictures of dead bodies, claiming that they were those of missing cockfight enthusiasts that were found in Tanay, Rizal or in Bulacan. Police debunked the claim, however, proving that the photos were taken on February 12 during a police investigation of a shootout in Guindulungan, Maguindanao (today Maguindanao del Sur).[17] [18] They condemned the post as misinformation attempting to derail their investigation.[19]
Ricardo Lasco Jr., brother of one of the missing sabungeros, said that the armed men who stormed his brother's house identified themselves as NBI agents, presented an arrest warrant charging Lasco with "large-scale estafa". At least two police officers were implicated, but both denied their involvement.[20] According to San Pablo chief of police Gary Alegre, the NBI did not conduct an operation that day. Senator dela Rosa suggested that e-sabong "website cloning" or spoofing might have led to Lasco's disappearance.[21]
On March 16, police identified eight people involved in the disappearances.[22] Five days later, witnesses implicated businessman Atong Ang in the disappearances of the cockfight players; Ang denied the allegations.[23]
On October 8, authorities said that they traced the location of cellphones belonging to two of the missing people through their IMEI number; police did not publicize the location.[24] The CIDG released composite sketches of the two men.[25] The following day, the family of one missing man filed complaints of kidnapping and illegal detention against a farm manager and a security officer.[26]
The Department of Justice announced on December 19 the indictment of three police officers in connection with the robbery and kidnapping of Richard Lasco on August 30, 2021.[27] On February 13, 2023, police released photos of six Manila Arena security guards allegedly involved in the disappearances.[28] Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla offered a ₱6 million reward to anyone who could provide information about the suspects.[29]
An investigative documentary film titled Lost Sabungeros from GMA Public Affairs and GMA Pictures was supposed to premiere on at the 20th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival.[30] [31] However, this showing was cancelled due to unspecified “security concerns”.[32]
The families of 18 sabungeros held a protest at Mendiola Street in Manila on January 31, 2022, calling for the government to speed up the investigation.[33] On February 12, Senator Leila de Lima expressed concern about the missing cockfighters and criticized the "seemingly slow pace of [the] investigation".[34] Three days later, the families held a prayer vigil at the Commission on Human Rights headquarters in Quezon City.
On March 17, President Rodrigo Duterte raised the possibility that the missing 36 sabungeros were dead. Dela Rosa also said that the missing sabungeros were presumed dead due to the lack of recovered remains. Duterte rejected an earlier appeal by the Senate to suspend e-sabong operations, saying that it would cost the Philippine government about (12.15 million) per month in revenue, adding up to billions of pesos annually. He noted that the disappearances of the sabungeros were not the fault of the e-sabong management but of bad actors involved in e-sabong events.[35] On May 4, Duterte ordered the termination of e-sabong operations due to the social cost of the gambling activity.[36]