The much-publicized filing of criminal charges against suspended Negros Oriental 3rd District Rep. Arnolfo “Arnie” A. Teves in the March 4 killings of Gov. Roel R. Degamo and nine other persons did not push through on Monday, May 15, as earlier announced by Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla. Instead, during a press briefing, Remulla said the charges against Teves will be filed “most probably on Wednesday,” May 17, before the Department of Justice (DOJ) by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI). Citing the reasons for the delay, Remulla said that the suspects already in the custody of law enforcement agencies have started to be represented by lawyers. “They were provided with lawyers by some people who are paying for their lawyers who were not there before,” he said. He said that before the appearance of the private lawyers, whose names he did not disclose, there were six persons who surrendered to the military for their alleged involvement in the killings. He recounted that those who surrendered were “brought quickly to the NBI for debriefing and questioning and were provided by counsel from the Public Attorney’s Office.” “But when we were already pursuing the participation of Cong. Teves...,” lawyers started representing those in custody, he said. “Obviously, some people are interested in the statements they want to give and now they don’t want to cooperate anymore,” he also said. “There’s a conspiracy and there’s probably people with a lot of money operating within the conspiracy to be able to afford the lawyers they are now getting,” he said. But, he said, “that will not stop us from filing the proper cases because the statements have been given much earlier... with CCTV (closed circuit television cameras) and cameras and in front of witnesses and PAO lawyers.” “We suspect that they will change their statements later on and may make recantations of sorts,” Remulla said. “But we’re not afraid of that because everything was clearly given  and said in front of counsel and other people,” he stressed. Teves has been linked as “one of the masterminds” in the killing of Degamo. He has been suspended as a legislator and refused to return to the Philippines despite the expiration of his travel authority last March 9. Teves had also applied for asylum before the government of Timor Leste which denied his request. Since day one of his alleged involvement in the Degamo killing, Teves has repeatedly denied the allegations against him.