Duterte orders arrest of 19 convicts freed via GCTA

MANILA, Philippines —  President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the arrest of 19 convicts prematurely released due to the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law, Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesperson Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac said Friday.

According to Banac, the convicts were among the nearly 2,000 inmates believed to have been erroneously released due to the GCTA law but did not surrender within the 15-day grace period that ended on September 19.

“In his directive, President Duterte ordered the police to resume its operations to capture 19 released convicts included in the partial list provided by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Bureau of Corrections,” Banac said in a statement.

He said police tracker teams have been tapped to hunt down these convicts.

He added that the 19 inmates, whose names were not released, were identified by the DOJ as among those who should be rearrested as of 12 noon of September 30.

He said manhunt operations will be limited to search and arrest operation only, in accordance to guidelines set by the DOJ. /jpv