THE Department of Justice has filed criminal charges before the Valenzuela City Regional Trial Court against nine people, including businessman Richard Tan and customs broker Mark Taguba, for their alleged involvement in the importation of P6.4-billion shipment of shabu last year.
This came after the DoJ investigating panel—composed by Asst. State Prosecutors Aristotle Reyes and Rodan Parrocha—found probable cause to indict Tan and Taguba for committing the crime of transportation and delivery of dangerous drugs penalized under Section 5, in relation to Section 26A of Republic Act 9165 or the Dangerous Drugs Law.
Also charged with the same criminal offense before the Valenzuela City RTC were Chen Julong, alias Richard Tan or Richard Chen; Taguba; Li Guang Feng, alias Manny Li; Dong Yi Shen Xi, alias Kenneth Dong; Eirene Mae Tatad; Teejay Marcellana; Chen I-Min; Jhu Ming Jhun; and Chen Rong Huan.
No bail was recommended for the accused.
In a related development:
• The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency on Wednesday said the illegal drug trade at the New Bilibid Prison was continuing, citing an entry of new suppliers of illegal drugs at the national penitentiary.
At a congressional hearing conducted by the House sub-committee on correctional reforms, PDEA acting director for Intelligence services Jigger Montellana made the disclosure, saying the new drug players were convicted “big-time” Chinese drug lords whose names were not being monitored by intelligence agents.
Meanwhile, the Manila City Regional Trial Court, Branch 46, on Wednesday ordered the arrest of Taguba and seven others, in connection with the smuggling of P6.4 billion worth of illegal drugs.
In a warrant of arrest, the RTC also ordered the arrest of Li Guang Feng alias Manny Li, Dong Yi Shen Xi alias Kenneth Dong, Eirene Mae Tatad, Teejan Marcellana, Chen I-Min, Jhu Ming Jhyun and Chen Rong Juan.
Chen Ju Long or Richard Tan was not included in the arrest order because of a pending motion to dismiss.
No bail was recommended for the accused.
The arrest order came after the DoJ refiled before the Manila City court the case that was originally lodged before the Valenzuela Regional Trial Court, but the latter court dismissed it for lack of jurisdiction.
Montellana attended the hearing to update lawmakers on the alleged proliferation of illegal drug trade at the NBP.
The sub-committee earlier conducted a series of investigation on the issue which led to the filing of charges against Senators Leila de Lima.
Nevertheless, Bureau of Corrections legal officer Daisy Castillote clarified that transactions of illegal drug trade inside the NBP still existed but not necessarily “proliferation.”
“We are concurring with the PDEA. There is no manufacturing inside the Bureau of Corrections or NBP. Transactions [made through] telephone communications is (sic) all that is happening. No proliferation inside,” Castillote said.
Montellana said the new players of illegal drug trade at the NBP were using their connections to supply illegal drugs outside.
“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 radar of personalities we are already monitoring,” Montellana said.
Supt. Enrico Rigor, chief of the Legal and Investigation Division of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group, told lawmakers they have monitored two telephone conversations between drug suppliers from inside the NBP and a transacting individual outside during the last three quarters of 2017—from March until December last year.
Rigor blamed the Anti-Wiretapping Law for the inability of drug enforcement authorities to quell the illegal trade transactions at the NBP.
“Actually we [need] the anti-wiretapping law because as mentioned earlier, most of the activities there are concentrated on transactions using cellphones. So we continuously monitor the activities outside [and those] transacted inside the NBP, but unless and until the anti-wiretapping bill will be enacted, we cannot go against those incarcerated in the NBP,” Rigor said.
But House deputy speaker Gwen Garcia scored the national police for using the law as “convenient excuse” for its failure to address the illegal drug trade at the national penitentiary.
“I am just aghast now when Supt. Rigor says that we cannot monitor the communications coming from these drug lords. We are waiting for the anti-wiretapping law. That cannot be a convenient excuse right now,” Garcia said.
“I cannot accept the statement of Police Supt. Enrico Rigor…[It] may become a convenient excuse in order to say that we cannot really curb the illegal drug trade inside the NBP–where cellphones are prohibited–because we’re waiting for the new anti-wiretapping law,” Garcia said.
“This gives more excuse to the authorities not to do their jobs,” she added.
She added that installing jammers “is a tacit [admission] of the fact that they cannot even implement that policy.”
In finding probable cause against the above-named respondents for the importation of 602 kilograms of shabu, the panel determined that the combination of the individual participation of each of the respondents, either as shipper, consolidator, facilitator, broker, financier, consignee, or warehouse lessee revealed a pattern of overt acts indicative of conspiracy to import into the country the dangerous drugs.
The panel recommended the filing of the corresponding criminal information for importation of dangerous drugs against the above named respondents with no bail recommended.
Under the case, the nine defendants are accused of having conspired in bringing into the country 602.279 kilograms of methamphetamine hydrochloride, locally known as shabu.
The DOJ filed the case at the Valenzuela RTC last November 22, 2017 after prosecutors issued a resolution which found probable cause to indict them.
The case stemmed from the Bureau of Customs’ discovery of the shabu shipment at the Hong Fei Logistics warehouse in Valenzuela City on May 26, 2017 based on a tip from the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of the China Customs.
The shabu shipment managed to enter the country through the BoC after being declared as kitchenware, footwear and moldings. With PNA