Fame and Foul Play: The Celebrity Connection to the Sabungeros Vanishings

By Louis ‘Barok‘ C. Biraogo — July 3, 2025

IN THE flickering haze of CCTV footage, Ricardo Lasco, a 42-year-old cockfighting aficionado, is a ghost in the making. Hands bound, face etched with dread, he’s shoved into a van by men cloaked in police uniforms. That was his final moment in the light—until a whistleblower’s chilling claim: Lasco’s body, alongside dozens of others, lies entombed in Taal Lake, anchored by sandbags in a watery crypt for those who dared defy the powerful.

This is no mere crime. It’s a scream from the margins—a parable of corruption so brazen, impunity so entrenched, that it drowns hope itself in the volcanic depths.

1. A Mastermind’s Whisper: “The Supreme Court Bows to Me”

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla drops a revelation that chills the blood: a shadowy figure, nestled within a 20-person syndicate of government and police insiders, boasts of owning the judiciary. “Kahit Supreme Court kaya nya,” Remulla intones, his voice heavy with foreboding, as if unmasking a specter. But why the silence on names?

A calculated dodge? Remulla claims the Department of Justice is weaving a case, yet his cryptic “Basta there are others” reeks of political hedging—or fear of untouchables.
A celebrity distraction? The sudden spotlight on actress Gretchen Barretto, linked to e-sabong tycoon Atong Ang, feels like a sleight of hand. Is she a scapegoat or a player? The DOJ’s refusal to confirm whistleblower Totoy’s “alpha member” claim hints at caution—or capitulation.

The air grows thick with questions no one dares answer.

2. The Blood Money of E-Sabong

Remulla’s warning cuts like a blade: “E-sabong money is heavy.” It’s a currency of silence, buying more than loyalty—it buys lives.

Judicial betrayal: The syndicate’s alleged grip on the courts echoes a grim history of gambling-fueled corruption, where bribes flow from backrooms to the highest benches.
Police as predators: Three officers face indictments, 20 more named by Totoy. Yet no powerful wrists are cuffed. Who shields them?
A corporate abyss: The syndicate operates with cartel-like precision, laundering blood money through legal e-sabong fronts. Who reaps the profits? Remulla’s silence is deafening.

3. The Investigation’s Dark Voids

Taal Lake’s Silent Screams

Remulla vows action—“ASAP,” he declares—but the clock ticks ominously.

Stalled searches: Japan’s underwater drones, meant to probe Taal’s depths, arrive months after bodies were allegedly sunk. Why the delay? Is evidence dissolving in the lake’s acidic embrace?
A fragile witness: Totoy’s testimony, the case’s brittle spine, remains an unsigned affidavit. Is this bureaucratic bungling, or has fear silenced him?

A Circus of Distraction

Facebook hoaxes about “floating corpses” whip up public frenzy, while Remulla’s press conferences deliver theatrics but no indictments. The truth slips deeper into the shadows, drowned by noise.

4. A Reckoning—or a Cover-Up?

Urgent Demands

Unmask the guilty: Name the syndicate’s players. Freeze their assets. No more veiled hints.
Global scrutiny: Invite UN forensic teams to Taal Lake before evidence vanishes under local hands.
Shield the truth-teller: Totoy’s life hangs by a thread. A dead witness buries justice.

Systemic Salvation

End e-sabong: This legalized poison fuels the slaughter. Ban it now.
Cleanse the courts: Remulla’s promised talks with the Chief Justice must birth ironclad anti-bribery reforms, or they’re just whispers in the wind.

The Final Reckoning

The DOJ can plumb Taal Lake for bodies—but will it dare excavate the rot in its own halls? “The fish in Taal are fat this year,” a weathered fisherman muttered to me, his eyes hollow, his voice a warning. He didn’t need to say more.