De Lima’s dilemma: Who will guard NBI guards?

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes (Who will guard the guards themselves)?

This Latin query by the Roman poet Juvenal could best describe Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s problem concerning the 19 high-profile prisoners from New Bilibid Prison who are currently detained at the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) headquarters in Manila.

De Lima on Thursday said she had ordered an investigation into allegations that three to four NBI agents helped the inmates smuggle mobile phones into their high-security detention quarters.

In an interview with reporters, De Lima said one of the 19 inmates had tagged NBI agents as being behind the smuggling. “According to the informant, the cell phones obtained by the detainees came from the NBI agents themselves.”

She said the suspected agents were members of the very team that searched the quarters for contraband. “They (agents) would conduct phoney searches and then leave one or two cell phones (behind). So definitely there will be a serious investigation,” De Lima said.

De Lima declined to disclose the names of the agents, but said three of them were always present during the searches, including one supervisor.

Informant moved for safety

It was also possible that the agents were taking orders from another official, she added.

De Lima said she would speak with NBI director Virgilio Mendez about the possibility of again suspending the convicts’ visiting privileges. But her priority would be the “safety” of the informant, who has been segregated from the others and moved to a safe house under the Witness Protection Program.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima

“He knew a lot and it’s precisely because of that that I felt he would not be safe if we return him to [his cell], both from his fellow inmates and the NBI agents he implicated. He is a witness to these irregularities and should be given protection,” she said.

According to reports reaching the DOJ chief, some of the detainees shelled out P1.5 million for each cell phone they got. The payment allegedly took place outside the NBI.

Some of the phones were concealed in the food, slippers and kitchenware delivered to the inmates. When found, they contained text messages in Chinese, according to the NBI.

“It’s the Chinese inmates in particular who are paying, according to our informant. They negotiate for a fee. But of course, the money does not come from the inside but outside,” De Lima said.

The investigation would determine the accountability of the Bureau of Correction (BuCor) guards who are supposed to be in charge of the prisoners, she said. De Lima pointed out, however, that the informant tagged only NBI agents.

“I will ascertain what their arrangements are. Technically and strictly speaking, it’s the BuCor which has the primary obligation to search the prisoners; the NBI is there only for support. But since they are physically housed in the NBI, my instructions were to continue regular searches,” she said.

The 19 high-profile inmates, mostly convicted drug lords, were transferred to the NBI after raids conducted in December last year revealed how they were able to continue with their illegal transactions behind bars while living in virtual luxury in well-furnished kubol, or quarters.