Former police colonel Rafael Dumlao III, who is also a lawyer, is facing a disbarment case after he was found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Jee Ick-joo, a South Korean businessman, in 2016.
Jee's widow, Kyungjin Choi, filed a complaint with the Supreme Court. According to her, Dumlao's conviction is a serious violation of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA), which could lead to his permanent disbarment from the bar.
Choi also stressed that Dumlao's actions were moral turpitude and could be considered grossly immoral conduct, grounds for his removal from the bar. Dumlao also allegedly violated his Lawyer's Oath that he took after passing the Bar.
The widow requested that Dumlao be disbarred because his “grossly immoral conduct and disobedience to the law” is a clear lack of respect for the duty of a lawyer.
Dumlao was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole and ordered to pay nearly ₱350,000 in damages for the case of kidnapping with homicide. There is another sentence of life imprisonment and ₱225,000 in damages for kidnapping and serious illegal detention, and an additional sentence of up to 35 years in prison for carjacking. Currently, Dumlao remains at large after posting bail in 2019 before being finally found guilty by the Court of Appeals.
