Maguans in disbelief over Rolito Go ‘kidnap’

Rolito Go. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Disbelief. This is how the family of Eldon Maguan is feeling after learning that Rolito Go, who was convicted of killing Eldon, was missing from the National Bilibid Prison and was reported to have been kidnapped.

“Who would believe that Rolito was kidnapped?” Ellis Maguan, Eldon’s older brother asked in Filipino.

Go was reported missing by authorities at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday after he could not be found at the NBP. His family came the following day to inform the NBP that Go was kidnapped and that his abductors were demanding a P1 million ransom.

Maguan’s older brother laughed off the Gos’ claim, saying, “The world knows that Rolito is a bigtime government contractor and wealthy businessman before he killed our brother in simple traffic incident in 1991.” He was referring to the traffic altercation between Go and brother Eldon that resulted in the death of his younger brother. The businessman was convicted in 1994 for the killing and has since served more than half of his life sentence.

Ellis also dismissed as an “unbelievable alibi” that Go was kidnapped.

“First of all, Go and his nephew disappeared at 1 in the morning. Were kidnappers awake at that time? Second, why was the news broken by his sister? Did the kidnappers know that she was awake and that she had the P1 million ransom with her? And lastly, will anyone kidnap her brother knowing how bad he is and that he can escape even with security assigned to him?” Ellis said in the same statement.

Go escaped the Rizal Provincial Jail in Pasig City on the eve of All Saints Day in 1994 before he was convicted by the Pasig regional trial court. At that time, the Maguans believed that Go was “freed” by jail guards, who were later dismissed from the service.

Two years later, Go, sporting a heavy moustache, was captured in Pampanga by operatives whom he tried to bribe in exchange for his freedom but was turned down.

Like the escape incident in 1994, Ellis believed that Go was also “released and freed” by NBP officials in exchange of millions of pesos.

The Maguans learned that Go has been a “living out” inmate at the NBP since 2008.

They appealed to Justice Secretary Leila De Lima to reject Go’s application for medical treatment outside of prison because “it’s only the convict’s alibi to visit his family in Quezon City which Go had been doing since 2008.”