MANILA — The Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) has recommended the filing of charges against 11 members of the Ateneo de Manila University men’s basketball coaching staff, including former head coach Tab Baldwin, over the drowning deaths of two student-athletes during a team-building activity in Aurora province on June 8.

Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said Friday that the CIDG endorsed the case to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for evaluation, case build-up, and preliminary investigation for alleged violations of Republic Act No. 11053, or the Anti-Hazing Act.

“This is not about training or hazing. This is also about the rights of the players. Ito rin po ay sana maging leksyon para sa lahat ng mga organisasyon na ang ganitong klaseng bagay ay hindi pwedeng dalhin sa magaanan paraan lamang (I hope this will also be a lesson for all organizations that this kind of thing cannot be taken lightly). Hazing is not only initiations. Hazing can occur in any organization,” Remulla said during a press briefing.

Also recommended to face charges were strength and conditioning coaches Grant Dearns and Caesar Vincent Elumba; assistant coaches Dean Caesar Castaño, Sandro Nicholas Soriano, and Reynaldo Jacinto Jr.; student managers Paolo Manuel Adevoso and Andrew Lorenzo Salud; physical therapist John Eric Rueca; and utility personnel Aris Pronce and Joel Rapa.

“This is only the recommendation of the CIDG as the complainant. The final arbiter of what they will be charged with will be the Department of Justice,” Remulla said.

PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the police investigation gathered sufficient evidence to support prosecution under the Anti-Hazing Law.

“The PNP, nag-imbestiga nang maayos (investigated properly) and so the pieces of evidence that were gathered shows that a case can be prosecuted under the Anti-Hazing Law,” Nartatez said.

“We are recommending the suspects or respondents to be prosecuted under Anti-Hazing Law because we found out that there is an act of maltreatment and hazing and initiation and therefore, they should be tried under Anti-Hazing Law and ang ini-implement natin dito or tina-try natin dito is we would like to deter the conduct of hazing or maltreatment,” he added.

Remulla said the immigration lookout bulletin order earlier issued against Baldwin would be upgraded to a hold departure order if the case reaches the courts.

“We will recommend the HDO pero sinabihan ko na rin siya nung umpisa pa lang na I recommend that you do not try to leave the country and he said I do not plan on going anywhere. He will stay. ‘Yun ang sabi niya (We will recommend the HDO but I told him from the start not to try to leave the country and he replied ‘I do not plan on going anywhere.’ He will stay. That’s what he said),” Remulla said.

The DILG chief also cited testimonies from former Ateneo players alleging similar near-drowning incidents during a 2016 training camp at the same site, contradicting Baldwin’s statement that no such incident had previously occurred.

According to Remulla, investigators found that Baldwin had instructed players on how to deal with rip currents despite knowing that five of them could not swim.

“Nakita namin na alam talaga niya. He was of full knowledge that this could possibly happen. Ang mahirap dito, paano mo tuturuan ang hindi marunong lumangoy ng mag-handle ng rip current (We saw that he was aware of it. He was full of knowledge that this (accident) could possibly happen. But the tricky part here is how can a non-swimmer be taught to handle a rip current)?” he said.

DILG Assistant Secretary Brian Mey Tomas said the investigation found that players were allegedly subjected to strenuous physical activities, punishment exercises, and sea-based training under hazardous conditions before 18-year-old Rene Baterbonia and 21-year-old Divine Adili drowned.

He added that the activity was reportedly meant to determine which players would earn spots on the team’s final roster for submission to the University Athletic Association of the Philippines.

Remulla said more than 620 pages of testimonies gathered during the investigation indicate that the players were exposed to extreme weather and dangerous conditions that resulted in the two deaths.