NBI fails to find ex-BuCor chief Bantag in 2 house raids

Gerald Bantag. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

Sacked Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag eluded arrest on Friday as the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) raided two houses to arrest him.

Bantag has been charged with masterminding the killing of radio broadcaster Percival Mabasa, also known as Percy Lapid, and prisoner Jun Villamor last year.

READ: PNP chief: Bantag now declared as a fugitive

The Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court and Las Piñas Regional Trial Court have issued warrants for Bantag’s arrest, but he was not found at the houses in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, and Caloocan City that the NBI raided.

In 2022, Mabasa was shot dead near his home after supposedly linking Bantag to corruption.

Officials have also accused Bantag of ordering the killing of Villamor, a prison inmate who allegedly passed the kill order to the gunman who shot Mabasa.

The DOJ has offered a P2-million reward for information leading to Bantag’s capture, and the NBI said it will continue its manhunt for the elusive former prisons chief. —RUSSEL LORETO