WHAT WENT BEFORE: ‘True Narcolist’ video

MANILA, Philippines — On April 2, a six-minute video titled “Ang Totoong Narcolist (True Narcolist) Episode 1” was posted on Facebook, showing a hooded man who claimed President Duterte’s son Paolo Duterte received payoffs from a drug syndicate.

The man identified himself as Bikoy and he said Paolo Duterte was known in the syndicate by the code name Alpha Tierra-0029.

Bikoy also showed a list containing the names of alleged drug lords and the money they had in their bank accounts.

The first video was followed by others where Bikoy accused other people close to President Duterte, including his 15-year-old daughter Veronica, former special presidential assistant Christopher “Bong” Go, and lawyer Manases Carpio, husband of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, of accepting payoffs from the syndicate.

Bikoy said other politicians and some businessmen from Bicol region had links to the illegal drug trade.

He said he had documents from the time he started working for the drug syndicate in 2010.

Bikoy said he handled the financial records of the ring, which operated in Southern Luzon and in the Visayas.

He said the code name Polo Delta was actually Paolo Duterte, who allegedly had bank accounts held for him by Agriculture Undersecretary Waldo Carpio, brother of Manases Carpio.

In the syndicate’s financial transactions, he said, Paolo Duterte was referred to as Polo Delta-TSG01.

Bikoy said he left the syndicate last year.

He said he decided to disclose what he knew about Paolo Duterte’s involvement in the illegal drug trade after President Duterte released his list of so-called narcopoliticians.

“I left the syndicate and tried to lead a new life. But the syndicate did not leave me alone and I’m now getting death threats,” Bikoy said. —Inquirer Research

Source: Inquirer Archives