Ex-Philippines president Duterte gets death threat case thrown out for lack of evidence
- France Castro alleged Duterte threatened her life twice last year and had asked a state prosecutor in Manila to charge him
- Prosecutor Ulric Badiola recommended the dismissal of the Castro complaint, saying ‘there is no sufficient evidence’
A Philippine prosecutor has thrown out a criminal complaint against former president Rodrigo Duterte, who was accused of making a death threat against a woman legislator, according to court documents released Friday.
House of Representatives Deputy Minority Leader France Castro alleged Duterte threatened her life twice last year and had asked a state prosecutor in Manila to charge him.
The prosecutor, Leilia Llanes, dismissed the complaint on Tuesday “for want of sufficient evidence” in an approved resolution released to the press on Friday.
Castro had alleged that Duterte committed the crime of “grave threats” under the Cybercrime Prevention Act during two interviews with local broadcaster SMNI.
Duterte denied threatening to kill Castro, asking the prosecutor last month not to indict him.
In one of the interviews, the ex-president recounted “advice” he gave his daughter, Vice-President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, on how she could use intelligence and confidential funds allocated to her office.