Self-confessed hitman Edgar Matobato said he has “killed and disposed of many bodies” as part of the death squad under former Davao City mayor and ex-President Rodrigo Duterte.
Matobato made the “final confession” in an interview with The New York Times as he had already left the Philippines after going into hiding for years.
In the interview, Matobato said he killed people for the former president and ex-mayor, whom he used to call “Superman,” for almost 24 years.
According to Matobato, he earned a monthly salary of around P5,800 from City Hall and received cash envelopes for successful hits.
“I will face what I did. But Duterte, he must be punished by the court and by God,” he said.
Matobato also narrated to The New York Times how he would slice through the chest, remove the vital organs, and sever the limbs.
Afterward, he would decapitate the victim and place the head in the cavity where the organs had been.
To mask the odor, he would pour engine oil over the dismembered body.
He mentioned that cutting off the ears served no particular purpose, but once he began, it was often difficult to stop.
Matobato said the Davao Death Squad frequently worked at the Laud Quarry in Ma-a, an area surrounded by lush tropical greenery in Davao City.
For 25 years, the squad reportedly dismembered and buried hundreds of bodies at this location, according to statements from five individuals who claimed to be members of the group. They said Duterte occasionally oversaw the torture, executions, and grave digging.
The confessed hitman also said his role was to handle body disposal at the quarry, owned by a policeman who was a founding member of the Davao Death Squad.
After long days at the quarry, Matobato said he and the other hitmen would often head to the Vista View restaurant, where they took over a cabaña with a view of the Laud quarry. They enjoyed seafood and halo-halo, a Filipino ice cream sundae.
However, on at least one occasion, Mr. Matobato dined at the quarry. He and another squad member set up a barbecue, and Mr. Matobato sliced a piece of thigh from a fresh corpse. They grilled and ate the meat, with each bite strengthening the bond between the hit men.
Matobato said he never questioned the hit. After so many years, he confessed that he realized he was no longer just killing “trash,” as he referred to petty offenders.
“When we started, we were proud that we were neutralizing criminals, drug pushers, thieves, making Davao safe,” Matobato said. “Then it changed, but we kept following Superman’s orders.”
He also revealed to the New York-based organization that former Senator Leila de Lima, a critic of Duterte, was on the hit list.
De Lima, the former chair of the Commission on Human Rights, and her team unearthed human bones from a “mass grave” inside the Laud quarry.
“We waited, but she never came. We failed in our mission,” Matobato said.
In October 2024, Duterte acknowledged the existence of a death squad, describing its members as “gangsters,” not police officers. He claimed that “thousands” were killed, all of whom he labeled as “criminals.”
He also stated that he would “take full legal responsibility” for the events that transpired during the drug war.
When he assumed office in 2016, the Duterte administration initiated its controversial and violent war on drugs, known as Oplan Tokhang, which led to the deaths of thousands of suspected drug dealers, users, and small-time criminals.
According to the government’s “Real Numbers” data, 6,229 individuals were killed during anti-drug operations between July 1, 2016, and January 31, 2022.
However, human rights groups estimate that the death toll from the violent anti-narcotics campaign could be as high as 30,000. (TCSP)
