Resigned Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin appears before NBI
Resigned Ateneo men's basketball coach Tab Baldwin has appeared before the National Bureau of Investigation for its investigation into the deaths of student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili.
Baldwin attended the NBI-Homicide Division's probe on Tuesday, June 23, after skipping past fact-finding sessions despite a subpoena. With him were five lawyers, including Atty. Daniel Darvin.
The coach stayed mum as reporters asked him questions regarding the drowning incident that took the lives of Baterbonia and Adili.
"We deeply sympathize, of course, with the families of Rene and Divine. We come before this office in the spirit of full cooperation and full compliance with the subpoena and in order to shed light on the incidents of June 8, 2026," Darvin told reporters.
"The investigation is ongoing. We've given our full cooperation."
Baldwin skipped previous NBI probes, with some of his lawyers saying he was not in "good condition."
The American-New Zealand coach is among 20 individuals summoned by the NBI in its investigation.
On June 19, he attended the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group's investigation into the incident at Camp Crame.
Baterbonia and Adili passed away on June 8 after drowning in Dipaculao, Aurora, during a team-building activity.
Baldwin only spoke out about the incident on June 12, as he was asked to "refrain from making public statements" by Ateneo. In his video statement, he apologized to the players' families and "everybody that feels let down, somehow betrayed."
"At that moment, I felt I had failed—I failed as a leader. I felt I had failed as a coach. I certainly felt like I had failed as a friend to Divine and Rene," he said.
Baldwin and team manager Epok Quimpo resigned on June 15 over the tragedy.
The NBI and CIDG are both conducting probes into the deaths of the athletes, with the latter looking into possible violations of the anti-hazing law.
On June 17, Acting Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida confirmed that an immigration lookout bulletin order was issued against Baldwin, Quimpo, and assistant coaches Reynaldo Jacinto Jr., Dean Castaño, and Sandro Soriano while investigations are ongoing.