The Senate Blue Ribbon committee has recommended the filing of charges against 19 people tagged in the multi-billion-peso shabu shipments that slipped through the Bureau of Customs.
“So far, this report has reached and implicated public officers up to the Deputy Director General in PDEA and Deputy Commissioner in the Bureau of Customs. This is not to say that those involved cannot go any higher,” the committee said in a report.
“We dread to think that it might…and thus, we need to investigate more in order to determine with certainty all the people responsible for these abhorrent acts.”
The committee filed the report on Dec. 13 but released to reporters only late on Monday afternoon
Recommended to be charged were dismissed PNP colonel Eduardo Acierto, who is accused of importing illegal drugs, graft, bribery and obstruction of justice; sacked PDEA deputy chief Ismael Fajardo, who is accused of importing illegal drugs, graft, violation of the code of conduct of public officials, bribery and obstruction of justice; resigned Customs intelligence officer Jimmy Guban, who is accused of importing illegal drugs, conspiracy to commit graft and corruption, violation of the code of conduct of government officials, bribery and obstruction of justice.
The Senate panel said Acierto, a veteran anti-drug cop, was the “linchpin” of the shabu shipments, as most of the resource persons pointed to him as the boss handing down the commands for the shipments and their cover-ups.
Despite the findings on Guban, the Senate panel said he was not the “most guilty” and should continuously be granted immunity from the charges as a state witness under the Department of Justice’s witness protection program.
All three were named in President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug matrix.
Also recommended to be slapped with charges were SMYD Trading owner Marina Signapan, who is accused of importing illegal drugs, graft and violation of Customs registration rules; broker Katrina Grace Cuasay, who is accused of importing illegal drugs and conspiracy to commit graft; Joseph Dimayuga, who is accused of importing illegal drugs and bribery; and Gorgonio Necessario, who is accused of importing illegal drugs and obstruction of justice.
The alleged real owner of SMYD Trading, Meg Santos, is accused of importing illegal drugs, graft and.
Three Customs employees were recommended to be charged with drug importation, receiving bribes and violating the code of conduct of government employees. They are X-ray examiner Noli Martinez, Customs appraiser Girlie Umali, and Examiner Jenaline Garcia.
However, the committee did not recommend any charges against X-ray chief Zsae de Guzman, who was earlier recommended sacked. De Guzman is already facing complaints from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
The committee also cleared former Customs chief Isidro Lapeña as earlier announced.