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MANILA - The family of artist Bree Jonson on Tuesday said they see a flicker of hope with the indictment of Julian Ongpin for possession of illegal drugs.

“Very happy yung family and incidentally nag coincide ito sa 30th day ng pagkamatay ni Bree. September 18 namatay and yesterday was the 18th of October so parang they saw a flicker of hope para dito kay Bree kasi kahit papaano meron nang naisampa against Julian,” said Atty. Ma. Moreni “Em” Salandanan, the family’s legal counsel.

(The family is very happy and incidentally this coincides with the 30th day of Bree's death. She died on Sept. 18, and yesterday was the 18th of Oct so they saw a flicker of hope for Bree, at least a case was filed against Julian.)

• Julian Ongpin indicted for possession of illegal drugs

On Monday, a panel of prosecutors from the Department of Justice indicted Ongpin, son of one of the country’s richest tycoons, for possession of illegal drugs.

The case against the 29-year old Ongpin would be filed at a regional trial court in San Fernando, La Union.

Authorities are investigating Ongpin in relation to the death of his girlfriend Jonson who was found dead last month in a resort in La Union.

“We are hoping that a warrant of arrest will be issued by the judge after the case has been filed in court. Kasi sa rules natin dito sa Pilipinas merong separate determination ang judge of probable cause for purposes of issuing a warrant of arrest, pero hopeful naman tayo kasi very obvious naman na he was caught in possession of 12.6 o 12.8 grams of cocaine,” said Salandanan.

Ongpin was charged with possession of illegal drugs, a non-bailable offense, after cops seized cocaine from the hotel room where he and Jonson were staying.

• Artist Bree Jonson laid to rest in Davao

Salandanan said the drug case is separate from the cases that the family would file against Ongpin.

“Separate ito. As of now, tinatapos pa lang ng NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) ang investigation nila para dito sa murder or homicide case ni Bree. After the investigation appropriate charge will be filed against Julian Ongpin,” she said.

(This is separate. As of now the NBI is still finishing its investigation for the murder or homicide case of Bree.)

The lawyer however said that they were not given a definite time by the NBI on when it will conclude with its investigations. But she believes this will not take too long as the NBI already has a handful of witnesses who testified.

“Siguro more than 10 na yung na interview, tapos in the coming days magkakaroon ng reenactment doon sa crime scene so I think ito na lang talaga ang inaantay para makapagbigay sila ng definite findings as to the cause of death of Bree. Kung ma find ng NBI na hindi nga ito suicide, imposibleng mangyari na suicide ito definitely appropriate cases will be filed against Julian,” she said.

(They probably interviewed more than 10 people and in the coming days, there will be a reenactment of the crime scene so I think this is what they are just waiting for before they make definite findings as to the cause of death of Bree. If the NBI finds that this is not suicide, then definitely appropriate cases will be filed against Julian.)

Ongpin was the last person seen with Jonson. He claimed that the artist took her own life, but her family refuted this.

Editor's note:

A group in the Philippines is dedicated to addressing those who have suicidal tendencies.

The crisis hotlines of the Natasha Goulbourn Foundation aim to make these individuals feel that someone is ready to listen to them.

These are their hotline numbers:

Information and Crisis Intervention Center
(02) 804-HOPE (4673)
0917-558-HOPE (4673) or (632) 211-4550
0917-852-HOPE (4673) or (632) 964-6876
0917-842-HOPE (4673) or (632) 964-4084

In Touch Crisis Lines:
0917-572-HOPE or (632) 211-1305
(02) 893-7606 (24/7)
(02) 893-7603 (Mon-Fri, 9 am-5 pm)
Globe (63917) 800.1123 or (632) 506.7314
Sun (63922) 893.8944 or (632) 346.8776