Cash-smuggling Bilibid VIPs put NBI on ‘no contact’ mode

MANILA, Philippines—After his agents and security personnel were apparently outsmarted by the Bilibid VIPs or “very important prisoners,” who were able to smuggle hefty amounts of cash and communication gadgets when moved last month from the national penitentiary, the chief of the National Bureau of Investigation issued new guidelines to further isolate the moneyed, well-connected inmates.

NBI director Virgilio Mendez is imposing a ‘’no-contact policy,” under which the transferees from the New Bilibid Prison would remain segregated from other detainees and no NBI agent can approach them.

Only organic agents and special investigators are authorized to guard the Bilibid inmates and nonorganic personnel are barred from entering the bureau’s jail compound, according to Mendez’s directive, a copy of which was obtained by the Inquirer.

Any communication made with any NBP inmate must be duly recorded in a logbook. The inmates may be given only food regularly rationed by the bureau and not any item bought from outside, it added.

Inmates with medical complaints shall have to be examined by the medico-legal officer on duty. In emergency cases, no inmate shall be brought to a hospital without the endorsement by the medico-legal, a recommendation from the NBI director and an approval from Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

The director’s order stemmed from the recent discovery of up to P800,000 in cash belonging to the 19 high-profile Bilibid inmates transferred Dec. 15 to the NBI headquarters in Manila from the national penitentiary in Muntinlupa City.

In two separate inspections late December and last week, wads of P1,000 and P500 bills were found stashed in toilet tanks and garbage bins inside the NBI detention quarters shared by the inmates, mostly drug lords who lived in virtual luxury at Bilibid until a De Lima-led raid exposed their well-appointed kubol or spaces. Five ranking prison officials have since been sacked.

The inspections also yielded four mobile phones and a Bluetooth earpiece.

The NBI earlier said it would conduct an investigation into how the money and gadgets were smuggled into the compound. It has yet to disclose the results of the probe.

Transferred from Bilibid were convicts Eugene Chua, Sam Li Chua, Vicente Sy, George Sy, Tony Co, Joel Capones, Herbert Colangco, Peter Co, Imam Boratong, Clarence Domingo, Tom Chua, Rommel Capones, Jojo Baligad, Willy Chua, Michael Ong, Jacky King, Willy Sy, Noel Martinez and Gernan Agojo.