Handcuffs, prison garb not needed for Bong Revilla—PNP

Sen. Bong Revilla having his mugshot taken at Camp Crame.  PNP/FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—No handcuffs? And not wearing the bright orange prison apparel?

No worries, Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. is not a “flight risk,” the Philippine National Police said about the celebrity senator’s appearance at the Sandiganbayan Thursday wearing a Barong Tagalog and no handcuffs.

“(Revilla) voluntarily surrendered so the chance of him escaping is very unlikely,” Chief Superintendent Reuben Theodore Sindac, PNP Public Information Office chief, said in a press briefing.

Revilla appeared at the Sandiganbayan for his arraignment where he refused to enter a plea in the biggest corruption trial in the country in more than a decade.

A police official clarified that only high-risk detainees are required to wear prison uniforms.

At the same time, the bright  clothing enables easy identification of prisoners during court trials.

“They (jailed senators) are famous people. They can be easily identified,” he added.

Revilla  has denied taking kickbacks or stealing money from state funds, but his lawyer Joel Bodegon said he advised the senator not to enter a plea so that several pending motions questioning the validity of the charges will not be dismissed.

Two other prominent senators are accused in the case — Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada. They have not been arraigned yet. With Associated Press

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