MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Monday, February 26, signed an order authorizing the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a case buildup against the recruiters of slain overseas Filipino worker (OFW) Joanna Demafelis.

“The NBI is directed and granted authority to conduct investigation and case buildup on the possible liabilities of Our Lady of Mt Carmel Global E-Human Resources Incorporated in the death of OFW Joanna Demafelis, and if evidence so warrants, to file appropriate charges thereon,” Aguirre wrote in Department Order No. 102 signed on Monday.

President Rodrigo Duterte has also ordered the NBI to summon the recruitment agency.

The Philippine National Police (PNP), meanwhile, has begun the hunt for the recruiters.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) earlier revoked the recruitment agency’s license, but migration and labor groups said this move made it more difficult to bring them to the legal process.

Demafelis was found dead inside a freezer in an abandoned apartment in Kuwait.

Lebanese Nader Essam Assaf and his Syrian wife Mona Hassoun, the principal suspects in Demafelis’ murder, were arrested in the Syrian capital of Damascus.

Duterte earlier cited Demafelis’ murder, along with other cases of abuse involving OFWs in Kuwait, as the reason for imposing a total ban on the deployment of Filipino workers to the Gulf country. – Rappler.com