MANILA, Philippines—Following reports that the three Chinese nationals who are facing drug charges have already left the country, Cavite Provincial Director, Superintendent Alexander Rafael, said Thursday authorities said are currently concentrating on identifying the armed group that took the three suspected drug lords to freedom.
In a phone interview, Rafael said investigators are looking at a particular “breakaway group” which took Li Lan Yan a.k.a Jackson Dy, Wang Li Na, and Li Tian Hua.
Rafael declined to elaborate as police operations are still ongoing.
Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla earlier said in a radio interview that the suspects may have already left for Taiwan via a sea vessel from Manila Bay as shown by their signal tracking.
Remulla said they last tracked the suspects to be somewhere along Naic before the signal disappeared along the waters of Manila Bay.
Last Wednesday, the three Chinese nationals were being driven by police to Trece Martires to attend a court hearing for a drug-related case around 10 a.m. when about 20 armed men overpowered and disarmed the four jail guards. The gunmen then seized the three Chinese drug suspects and escaped on a van.
Authorities said Dy’s group is one of the biggest drug syndicates in the country.
The maroon Ford Club Wagon (UBR 900) that was allegedly used by the armed group in their getaway was later found abandoned inside a residential compound at Sahud Ulan in Tanza, Cavite around 7:45 p.m. last Wednesday.
Rafael, however, said that the three Chinese drug suspects probably didn’t use a commercial transportation as his team have already alerted airports, seaports, piers and all other exit points about the escape of the suspects.
Regarding questions why the jail guards were armed only with short handguns in escorting high-profile suspects, Remulla said in the interview that this was due to restrictions of the Commission on Election’s gun ban rule.
“Election period po ngayon wala pong exemption ang aming jailguards na magdala ng high-powered firearms para sa mga operation na ganito,” Remulla said, adding that they have applied for exemptions, but has not yet been granted by the Elections commission.
(It’s election period and our jailguards don’t have exemptions to bear high-powered firearms for operations like this.)
“Pero magre-request na kami na i-grant na sa mga jailguards namin yung mga high-powered weapons para sa mga kasong katulad nito,” Remulla added.
(But we will request for exemption so our guards can bring high-powered firearms in cases like this.)
Nonetheless, the four jail guards were ordered to be placed under investigation, he said.