MANILA, Philippines—Despite the recanting of the lone state witness in the Batasan bombing, Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno on Wednesday said the government’s case remained strong against those charged for the blast that killed six people last November 13.

“I think our evidence will still pin all of them down. Their hideout was found, there was an actual shootout. There are pieces of hard evidence,” Puno said in an interview at Camp Crame Wednesday.

Seven people are charged for the bombing of the south wing of the House of Representatives, among them former congressman Gerry Salapuddin, former town mayor Hajurun Jamiri, and alleged bomber Ikram Indama, who had earlier agreed to turn state witness.

Among those killed was Representative Wahab Akbar, the alleged target of the attack.
Indama, the 35-year-old bomb suspect, walked out of police custody last weekend then proceeded to a Quezon City court judge on Monday to plead that he be transferred to another detention center. He complained that he was tortured and forced to make false statements while in the custody of the police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group headquarters in Camp Crame.

“Well, if he doesn’t want to be a state witness, that’s his privilege. Then he can be an ordinary defendant. The sad news there is we won’t get to the masterminds because he was pointing to the masterminds,” Puno said.

“So if he wants to be a fall guy, that’s up to him, that’s his privilege. It would have been better if he had been consistent... He chooses to become a different character, so he’s in Bicutan now, we’ll treat him now like how he wants to be treated, which is a defendant in the case,” he said.

Asked to comment on Indama’s claim of abuse, Puno said: “Here? Of course not. He was able to walk out of here, what’s he talking about. He was feeling safe here.”

“He was not under duress from us. When he left, of course we issued a warrant of arrest, he grew nervous. He knows we will find him so he surrendered right away,” Puno added.

Last year, Jamiri, a former town mayor, had also complained of torture by police investigators.