The National Bureau of Investigation will solely secure former police Senior Supt. Cezar Mancao II when he attends his trial on Wednesday amid a move by the lawyers of his co-accused to inhibit the judge trying the 2000 Salvador “Bubby” Dacer-Emmanuel Corbito double murder case.

Regional Director lawyer Ric Diaz, chief of the NBI Anti-Terrorism Division and concurrent spokesman for the Dacer-Corbito case, said the bureau received a notification from Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 18 to bring Mancao to the Aug. 13 hearing.

“We are directed to bring Mancao there and the NBI remains the sole agency tasked to provide security for Mancao,” he said.

While Mancao has already been transferred to a safe house of the Department of Justice Witness Protection Program last July 25, a day before former police Supt. Glenn Dumlao’s arrival from the United States, Diaz said Mancao is still being secured by the NBI.

Diaz said Mancao remains restricted in his safe house as he still an accused in the case.

“He remains an accused as the court has yet to remove him from the list of the accused to become a state witness. Mancao is under restriction,” he said.

Mancao and Dumlao, who were both extradited recently from the US, were among the accused in the double murder case and have yet to see each other.

Judge Myra V. Garcia Fernandez is expected to rule soon on the motion filed last Friday by defense lawyers of the co-accused of Mancao and Dumlao seeking to inhibit herself from trying the case.

In filing a motion for inhibition, lawyers of accused Thomas Sarmiento, Margarito Cueno, Crisostomo Purificacion, Rommel Rollan, and Ruperto Nemenio said Fernandez has “displayed manifest partiality, bias and hostility” in handling the case.