Bella had police ‘spy’ on P20T payola

Where is Bella Ruby Santos?

Two months after an arrest warant was issued against the high-profile murder suspect, the former bar girl from Naga City remains at large.

If you ask Renante Pique, father of slain kidnap victim 6-year-old Ella Joy, the reason law enforcers can’t find her is that Santos had a “mole” in the police force alerting her of their moves.

Pique was downhearted yesterday when he told Cebu Daily News he received reliable information from the PNP Task Force Ellah Joy that a member of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) was recently exposed as the fugitive’s ally.

He said the CIDG agent was found out in late August to have been receiving a monthly stipend of P20,000 from Santos.

Police authorities found incriminating messages in the agent’s cell phone, whose role was uncovered when Santos eluded arrest in Bohol province, apparently tipped off in advance.

“Dili maayo nga maingon niini ang resulta. Wala koy laing gisaligan gawas sa task force unya naay makaako pagbuhat ani. (It is not good to have a result such as this. There is nothing I trust except the task force. However, one of them betrayed me),”  said Pique.

Pique didn’t mention a name, and it wasn’t clear what action was taken against the CIDG-7 agent.

Lawyer Inocencio dela Cerna, counsel of the CIDG-7 and Task Force Ellah Joy Pique, denied the report.

“Our concern is to triple our efforts in enforcing the warrant against Bella Ruby. On conjectures of any person, we will not justify it with a comment,” said Dela Cerna in a separate interview.

“The task force is not resting on its feet. We are doing our best to arrest Bella Ruby,” he said.

Nevertheless, Pique said he still remains hopeful that law enforcers will arrest Santos.

“I have not lost hope in the police,” he said.

Santos and her boyfriend, British national Ian Charles Griffiths, were issued arrest warrants by the Regional Trial Court last July 12.

Before that, Santos was the frequent subject of news interviews either at her home in Naga City or by phone, where she insisted she was innocent of the charge of kidnapping and homicide.

CDN tried to contact her lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo but he did not answer  calls.

A second CDN source, who requested anonymity, confirmed the discovery of the mole.

Santos was about to be arrested in Bohol province but slipped away after being tipped off by the CIDG agent.

“She was warned beforehand about the arrival of the team,” the source said.

The CIDG-7 learned that the agent was communicating with Santos. The head of the CIDG-7 was reportedly fuming about the discovery.

The agent’s cellphone was confiscated and incriminating messages were found in it.  The agent  denied having communicated with Santos, saying he left his cellphone somewhere and someone else  might have used it.

The agent may e transferred to Mindanao after the incident, the source said.

Cebu police authorities have been under pressure to solve the kidnapping and killing of Ellah Joy, a grade school pupil in Minglanilla town, who disappeared on Feb. 8.

The little girl was  walking home from school with friends when she accepted a ride from a woman and a male foreigner riding a dark Sports Utility Vehicle.

After an arrest warrant was issued against Santo is July 12, she dropped out of sight.

In mid-August, had canned goods, rice and noodles sent to fire  victims in barangays Carreta and Tejero, Cebu City through the GMA -7 Kapuso Foundation.

The Cebu provincial government has offered a P300,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Santos.  Local police raised an additional P50,000.

Pique yesterday said that if Santos is really innocent, she should surface and go through the court trial.

“Kay kon magsige-siyag tago, hangtud sa tibuok niyang kinabuhi siya magtago. If not guilty siya, maayog moatubang siya aron ma-clear iyang name. If guilty siya, maayo gihapon og mo-atubang siya aron magmalinawon siya. (If Santos keeps on hiding, she will be hiding all her life. If she is not guilty, its good for her to show up to clear her name. If she is guilty, it would still be better for her to face the charges so she will find peace),” he said. /Reporter Ador Vincent Mayol