The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Wednesday reported that some convicted Chinese were able to continue their illegal-drug trade activities inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).
During the House Subcommittee on Correctional Reforms hearing on the proliferation of illegal drug at the NBP, PDEA Acting Director for Intelligence Services Jigger Montellana said illegal drugs are sourced outside the national penitentiary.
“We found out that some of sources of drugs we have confiscated actually comes from transactions from NBP, and most of these personalities are not captured in [the] radar of personalities we are already monitoring,” Montellana told lawmakers.
According to Montellana, these convicted Chinese do not belong to list of drug lords at the Maximum Security Compound of the NBP.
While there is no drug laboratory inside the national penitentiary, Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) legal officer Daisy Castillote, meanwhile, said drug-related transactions are made through cellular phones.
“We are concurring with the PDEA. There is no manufacturing inside the Bureau of Corrections or NBP. Transactions were made through telephone communications are all that has been happening. No proliferation inside [the prison facility],” said Castillote.
For his part, Philippine National Police (PNP) Supt. Enrico Rigor, chief of the Legal and Investigation Division of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group, said they recovered two telephone conversations between convicted Chinese and drug suppliers.
Rigor also told lawmakers that the anti-wiretapping law prevented the authorities from gathering evidence against these drugs lords.
Also, Frederick Santos, Bureau of Corrections Internal Affairs Service chief, said Building 14 of Maximum Security Compund has only two signal jammers.
Meanwhile, the committee has ordered the NBP to submit regular reports to the congressional oversight committee on the matter, as well as reforms inside the NBP.