On September 11, the former governor voluntarily surrendered to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) office in Metro Manila in connection with the alleged 2011 murder of Ortega in Puerto Princesa, in the western Philippine province of Palawan. The NBI is currently preparing documentation to return Reyes to the original court handling the case.
Ortega, an environmental journalist known for his critical reporting on Reyes, and issues related to mining and the alleged misuse of billions of pesos of the province’s share from the Malampaya gas project, was fatally shot in San Pedro Village, Puerto Princesa City, on January 24, 2011.
Marlon Recamata, the gunman, and Rodolfo "Bumar" Edrad, who admitted to their roles in the crime, were both arrested and sentenced in 2011. During separate trials, the two men implicated Reyes and his brother Mario, alleging they orchestrated Ortega’s killing for his critical reporting. In 2012, Reyes and his brother fled the country after the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) second panel indicted Reyes as the principal and mastermind suspect. The men were arrested in 2015 in Phuket, Thailand, and extradited back to the Philippines.
After a three year detention, Reyes was released in 2018 when the Court of Appeals voided the murder charges against him. Nearly two years later, the charges were reintroduced by new composition of justices in the Court of Appeal. Reyes has been in hiding since Presiding Judge Angelo Arizala, of Palawan Regional Trial Court Branch 52, issued an arrest warrant for the former governor in 2023, following the Supreme Court ruling that ordered his rearrest and murder trial’s resumption.
Reyes is now in custody at a hospital in Quezon City due to a medical condition.
NUJP said: “The NUJP hopes that the arrest will lead to justice for the slain broadcaster and environmental defender. We remain vigilant and will continue to stand with Doc Gerry’s family, friends, and supporters as we wait for the trial and the resolution of this decade-long case. We urge authorities to arrest and prosecute other fugitives in attacks on the media - including Gerald Bantag, the alleged mastermind in the 2022 killing of Percy Lapid.”
IFJ said: “Justice for the murder of Gerry Ortega is long overdue. Justice delayed is justice denied and IFJ commends all those journalists, activists and loved ones who have fought hard to ensure his life was not lost in vain. It is not just for the killers, but the masterminds, to be brought to justice in every case. The Philippines bleak history of impunity for journalist killings must be overcome – case by case, victim by victim.”