MANILA, Philippines – The National Bureau of Investigation has concluded that an inside job murder was committed in the death of eight high-profile drug convicts inside the New Bilibid Prison – contrary to official records of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) that claimed they died from COVID-19 from May to June in 2020.

“They availed [of] the situation that in case of Covid-19 cases, cadavers should immediately be cremated. Cremation, for this case, was the final act to consummate and effectively cover-up the scheme to kill the victims,” said the NBI in a press release on Tuesday, July 5.

The NBI filed murder complaints against 22 officers of the National Capital Region Police (NCRPO) who were assigned to Bilibid during that time. Although the case is officially for prosecutors to decide, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla met with NBI acting chief Medardo de Lemos on Monday, July 4, to “inquire more into the incident,” said lawyer Mico Clavano, a representative of Remulla’s office.

“The Secretary of Justice [has a] stern desire to hold all those involved accountable,” Clavano told reporters Tuesday.

The eight prisoners were residents of Building-14, a special facility in Bilibid for high-profile inmates where Jaybee Sebastian, key witness in the charges against jailed opposition leader Leila De Lima, also died.

Of the eight drug convicts, at least three – Eugene Chua, Amin Boratong, and Benjamin Marcelo – were among the Bilibid convicts whom De Lima transferred to the NBI from 2014 to 2015 after raids on their cells yielded luxury items and even drugs. Included in that group, more commonly known as Bilibid 19, is Peter Co, another key witness against De Lima.

The eight prisoners whose COVID-19 deaths are being linked to murder are: Francis Go, Shuli Lim Zhang, Jimmy Ang, Eugene Chua, Benjamin Marcelo, Sherwin Sanchez, Amin Boratong, and Willy Yang. 

An earlier investigation by Rappler shows they died within days of each other from May to June 2020, around the same time that there was also a surge of deaths in the national penitentiary. Many of them had unknown causes. Sebastian died in July but the NBI said “the circumstances surrounding the death of Jaybee Sebastian showed that he died of natural causes.”

What happened in Site Harry

For the eight, the NBI said they were taken to Building 4 of Site Harry, the special quarantine facility of Bilibid during the pandemic. The eight were taken to what is called the “comfortable isolation room,” after which, they all died.

“Witnesses had not observed any unusual situation of the prisoners while inside the isolation area, even when their rooms were only separated either by curtains or plywood,” said the NBI.

According to the NBI, the NCRPO officers said the eight were under an emergency situation and even needed nursing interventions from them.

The NBI also found that a “significant amount of time elapsed before the victims were brought to the nearest hospital.”

“All the deceased prisoners were declared dead on arrival, the cause of death either by cardiac or pulmonary arrest. However, a close examination of the medical profile of the deceased high-profile prisoners generally revealed that days before they died, they exhibited neither chronic symptom of Covid-19, including difficulty in breathing or shortness of breath, nor were they observed to be weak or particularly ill,” said the NBI.

The NBI added: “Witnesses had seen them to be well, normal, or lively.”

“We will study the report,” said Remulla. Clavano had no information whether the complaint filed before prosecutors would be on hold while Remulla inquired, or whether the justice secretary’s inquiry would reach into the accountability of organic BuCor officials, and not just the police officers assigned at the time.

De Lima remains on trial for two more counts of conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading, rooted in the narrative that she allowed a drug trade to thrive inside Bilibid during her time as justice secretary to receive kickbacks. Three witnesses, including two star prosecution witnesses, have retracted. The third count has been junked by a court in Muntinlupa.

Prosecutors can withdraw the charges. Remulla earlier said dropping charges is “possible if it’s the only recourse.” – Rappler.com