The government will be giving out a P500,000 reward to anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest of businessman Peter Lim, who went hiding after the Justice department indicted him for conspiracy to trade in illegal drugs before a Makati City court, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said Friday.
He also warned that criminal cases would be filed against anyone who caught coddling the fugitive businessman from Cebu.
“The government is ready to give a reward of P500,000 to anyone who can give information on the exact whereabouts of accused Peter Go Lim, provided that such information will lead to the actual arrest of the said fugitive,” Guevarra said in a text message to reporters.
He said those helping Lim to hide from the authorities would face prosecution for obstruction of justice.
“The DoJ warns the persons coddling Lim, who has been indicted for conspiracy to trade in illegal drugs, that they will be prosecuted for obstruction of justice and punished accordingly,” Guevarra said.
Arresting teams of the Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation have been hunting Lim down for more than a month since the Makati City Regional Trial Court Branch 65 ordered his arrest on Aug. 14.
The court has also issued a hold-departure order against the businessman to prevent him from leaving the country.
Earlier, Guevarra said Lim could still be in the country because, based on the records of the Bureau of Immigration, no Peter Go Lim had left the country.
“Mr. Lim has not left the country since his last trip in March,” Guevarra said.
He said should Lim sneak out via the back door, the government could seek the help of the Interpol to find him. On Aug. 10, the Justice department indicted Lim after finding probable cause in a complaint filed by the PNP-CIDG, which was earlier dismissed by a previous panel of prosecutors. Also charged in court were detained drug trader Kerwin Espinosa, state witness Marcelo Adorco and Ruel Malindangan.
The new panel led by Senior Associate State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera cited as evidence Espinosa’s confession at the Senate—the transcript of which was submitted to the investigating prosecutors for the new probe—and Adorco’s positive identification of Lim.