(UPDATED) Former Ozamiz City councilor Ricardo "Ardot" Parojinog was found dead in his detention cell in Ozamiz Police Station on Friday morning, September 4, 2020, police said.
"No violence was noted," Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Bernard Banac said.
Banac said Parojinog was found dead at about 6 a.m. Friday. He was alone inside the detention cell.
All Ozamiz Police Station personnel who were on duty Thursday night were placed under restrictive custody for possible investigation.
The security team from the PNP custodial center who brought Parojinog to Ozamiz Thursday was also placed under investigation, as ordered by PNP Chief Camilo Cascolan.
Northern Mindanao Police Regional Office Director Rolando Anduyan said Parojinog and the security team headed by Police Lieutenant Colonel Jiger Noceda arrived in Ozamiz Thursday.
He said Parojinog seemed to be in "low spirits" upon his arrival.
Parojinog was brought to Ozamiz from the PNP custodial center, where he had been held, because he was supposed to attend court proceedings on the murder and illegal drug cases against him on Friday.
Police who tried to wake him up on Friday morning found him unresponsive. Anduyan said they immediately sought medical help.
Anduyan said they have yet to determine whether Parojinog had a pre-existing medical condition.
"Hanggang ngayon iniimbestigahan natin. Baka mamaya anong sakit 'yung mayroon siya hindi natin alam kasi nanggaling siya diyan sa Manila," he said.
"Kasama sa imbestigasyon natin 'yan. 'Yun din ang tinatanong ko sa mga tao natin, inaalagaan din natin 'yan kasi medyo kilalang tao 'yan. Hindi natin alam kung nalulungkot siya siyempre sa kaso na inaabot niya, medyo matamlay noong dumating," he added.
Parojinog was the brother of the late Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog, who was killed along with his wife and 13 other people during an anti-illegal drugs police operation in their compound on July 30, 2017.
Parojinog was among the subjects of the arrest warrants but he was not around during the raid.
He was arrested in Taiwan, where he had gone into hiding, in May 2018. (VoxPop Philippines)