A Filipino police officer has been found guilty of the murders of two teenagers during Rodrigo Duterte’s government’s drug war.
On March 1, a Manila court found Jeffrey Perez guilty of the 2017 murders of 14-year-old Reynaldo De Guzman and 19-year-old Carl Arnaiz, according to the sentencing document obtained by AFP.
Mr. Perez was sentenced to a minimum of 20 years in prison.
He was already serving a long sentence after being found guilty by another court in November of torturing the two teenagers.
His co-defendant, police officer Ricky Arquilita, died during the first trial. Both denied the allegations made against them.
The teenagers were last seen together on August 17, 2017.
During the trials, a witness said he saw a police car parked on the side of the road and handcuffed Carl Arnaiz got out of the vehicle with his hands raised and shouted “I surrender” before being shot dead by the police officers.
Reynaldo De Guzman’s body was found north of Manila a few weeks later. He bore dozens of puncture marks.
During his six-year tenure, which expired in June 2022, Mr Duterte openly ordered police to shoot suspected drug smugglers if the officers’ lives were threatened.
According to official figures, more than 6,200 people have died as a result of this anti-drug campaign, but human rights groups estimate the number is actually in the tens of thousands.
Just three police officers had previously been convicted of murder during the anti-drug campaign, sparking an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who succeeded Mr. Duterte, has promised to continue his predecessor’s drug war with a particular focus on prevention. However, human rights groups say the killings continue under his supervision.
The ICC said in January it would reopen investigations into the drug war because its pre-trial chamber “is not satisfied that the Philippines is conducting relevant investigations that would justify postponing the court’s investigation.”
A decision that Manila appealed.