Child porn vs humanitarian: Justice or EJK?

A Boston native who was a cameraman who traveled all over the world "killed himself" in jail after being accused of child pornography in Cebu.

He was a "humanitarian" and a victim of "extra judicial killing" cries his family (!).

and because he is a Yank, and because some people knew his work, he will be assumed to be a victim of the Evil Duterte's extra judicial killings here.

I should also note that certain people are not above threatening foreigners for arrest for fake crimes (so that they can be given a gift to have the cops/officials let them go).

In this case, however, there was some evidence he was involved in filming cyberporn involving kids:

 From a local paper (PhilStar):

The  NBI arrested Phinney following a report from the Provincial Women’s Commission (PWC).
Authorities rescued an eight-year-old girl at his apartment in Talisay City and found dolls and teddy bears clad in bikinis. They also confiscated mobile phones, a tablet, laptop, hard drive, a high-end camera, and lenses.
Among the pieces of evidence NBI holds is a photograph of a men’s room, which has a cabinet filled with clothes for little girls.

The Provincial Women's Commission is a local human rights group who helps abused women and children. So it's not like the local cops just targeted him as a possible source of being blackmailed because he was a Yank: they were following up on complaints.

Reality check please:

The dirty little secret is the Philippines sex industry. (one reason the leftists wanted to get rid of American military bases). There was a kerfuffle a few years back when the US Ambassador was quoted in a Wikileaks leak that 40% of male tourists came here for sex.

Inquirer article (2014) on cyber pornography here.

The PhilInquirer: Jan 2018 article about an Australian pedophile arrest.

Deakin’s arrest on April 20 shows one of the darkest corners of the internet, where pedophiles in the United States, Europe and elsewhere pay facilitators in the Philippines to sexually abuse children, even babies, directing their moves through online livestreaming services.

This relatively new crime, webcam sex tourism, is spreading rapidly. The United Nations describes “alarming growth of new forms of child sexual exploitation online.”

The FBI says it’s epidemic, and that at any given moment, 750,000 child predators are online. Almost every case stems from the Philippines, where good English speakers, increased internet connections and widespread international cash transfer systems combine with widespread poverty and easy access to vulnerable kids.

There have been as many as three busts a week in the Philippines this spring. The youngest victim ever, rescued a few weeks ago, was an infant, 2 months old. Most are under 12. 

and Cebu is one of the centers of this crime.

so you see the problem.

one answer might be to figure out what was he doing in Cebu? Working for a legitimate film company? How long had he been in Cebu: visitor visa (3 weeks) or long term visa? Living there while his family resides in the USA?

What about his bank account? Follow the money.

And in a country where a little gift will lead to the cops/authorities to look the other way, and the legal system might take years to convict you (if you don't flee the country while out on bail), you can see why certain criminals are vulnerable to "EJK", if not by off duty cops, then by their fellow prisoners.

the bible notes certain crimes that cry to heaven for justice, and most folks figure abusing a child (especially sexually abuse of a child) is one of them.

It's a dirty little secret that similar killings of child molesters is common in US Jails. (often they are kept in solitary confinement for their own protection).

But here in the Philippines, there is another problem: The ability of the rich and powerful to subvert justice via repeated delays and then get the case thrown out of court.

for example, the country is still awaiting justice for the killers of the Manguindano massacre eight years later.


and our family knows from experience about justice: The killers behind the political hit that killed our nephew in the crossfire were arrested fairly quickly, but the politician behind the hit died ten years later (under indictment) in his bed, and was buried in a Catholic funeral, complete with the KofC honor guard.

so when Duterte started the drug war, a lot of folks sought justice the old fashioned way. (we were offered this but like DelToro's family, we declined).

Sigh.

no, I am not approving of EJK's, but I understand why 70 percent of Filipinos still support Duterte despite all the murders going on.